Prime Minister Victor Ponta told foreign journalist in a Tuesday meeting that Romania had to beef up its military to counter a threat from Russia, including by doubling its fighter jets to 24. He also expressed concern about neighbouring Hungary’s recent closeness to Moscow.
“I don’t want to talk about a neighbour but I think that Hungary’s position towards Russia is not only a matter of concern for Romania, it should be an issue to discuss at European levels,” he said.
Hungary last year granted Russia’s Rosatom a project to build two nuclear power blocks of 1,200 megawatts each, financed partly by a Russian loan. The deal drew criticism of Hungary for pulling closer to Russia at a time when the EU was putting pressure on Moscow to defuse a deepening conflict with Ukraine, Reuters reports.
Budapest: Hungary acts according to the EU position
Hungary has always acted in accordance with the joint European position on sanctions against Russia, despite significant negative effects on the economy, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry informed on Tuesday, reacting to the recent comments by the Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta, MTI informs.
Citing data from Eurostat, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry also said that despite sanctions and embargo, Romania was able to increase its exports to Russia by 5%.