Attila Tibor Nagy: Hungary interested in energy cooperation with Azerbaijan

Hungary is interested in the energy cooperation with Azerbaijan, and also seeks to establish strong ties with SPECA countries, Hungarian political scientist Attila Tibor Nagy told Report.

Nagy noted that in the current situation of confrontation between Hungary and other Western countries, the Orban government, as a counterbalance, is trying to build strong relations with some countries of the East, for example, with members of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS).

The political scientist pointed out Hungary’s interest in the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (Middle Corridor), as evidenced by the participation of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the summit of heads of state and government of the countries participating in the UN Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA).

“The main purpose of the Prime Minister's presence at the SPECA summit could be to improve relations and prepare the ground for new deals,” he said.

The expert noted that cooperation with Azerbaijan will help Hungary diversify gas supplies, since, despite the importance of cooperation with Russia, Budapest seeks to reduce its strong dependence on Moscow: “Currently, about half of the gas supplies to Hungary come from Russia, and the situation with oil supplies is even worse".

Nagy emphasized that the agreement concluded between Hungary and Azerbaijan for the supply of gas in a volume of 100 million cubic meters by the end of this year, although it cannot cover most of the needs of the Hungarian market, indicates a readiness for further cooperation in the energy sector.

On November 24, a summit of heads of state and government of the countries participating in the UN Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) was held in Baku. Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban took part as an honorary guest.