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17.02.2015 10:47
© Gazprom
During his upcoming visit to Budapest Russia’s President Vladimir Putin will discuss a bilateral natural gas supply agreement between Russia and Hungary. This will be either expanded or replaced by a new one, Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov has announced on Monday, portfolio.hu reported, as quoting information from Hungary’s state newswire MTI.
Ushakov said President Putin and Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will also address the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant, for which Moscow approved an EUR 10 billion loan for Budapest.
Putin will discuss gas co-operation with Hungary after Moscow decided in December last year to abandon the USD 40 billion South Stream underwater gas pipeline, which would have delivered gas to southern Europe circumventing Ukraine. Since then Moscow named Turkey as its preferred partner for an alternative pipeline.
Meanwhile last night around 2000 people gathered to protest Putin’s visit. Organisers told AFP the east-to-west route symbolised Hungarians' desire to remain rooted to the West rather than Russia.
"Putin can demonstrate to other Western countries that he has an ally which is an EU and NATO member, that European unity is not that strong after all," Andras Racz, analyst at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs commented for AFP.
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