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Politico (22 July 2026)

Gabriel GAVIN, Nicholas VINOCUR, Koen VERHELST and Max GRIERA

With Budapest no longer providing cover, EU governments are being forced to own their objections to tougher action against Russia.

EU ambassadors will make another push Wednesday to finalize the bloc’s first Russia sanctions package since Viktor Orbán left office, after governments stripped back key measures to protect their energy, fish processing, banking and shipping interests.

For years, Orbán — Hungary’s veteran populist leader who cultivated close ties with the Kremlin and repeatedly threatened to block sanctions — gave other capitals cover to resist tougher action. With Péter Magyar now leading Hungary and Budapest no longer standing in the way, those governments are being forced to defend their objections in the open.

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