EU ‘crushed’ itself by sanctioning Russia – Orban

The EU’s sanctions on Russia have ended up “crushing” the bloc itself, diminishing its economic competitiveness, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said.

Budapest has consistently opposed Brussels’ policies on Ukraine since the escalation of the conflict with Russia in February 2022, including the sanctions.

In a post on X on Sunday, Orban wrote: “Brussels promised sanctions would crush Russia. Instead, they crushed Europe.”

“Energy prices exploded, competitiveness collapsed, and Europe is falling behind,” he said, describing the economic trends across the EU as the “cost of bad decisions.”

Orban argued that the bloc should engage in negotiations with Moscow instead of doubling down on escalatory policies. Earlier this month, he said the EU is preparing for war with Russia by 2030, with a number of member states shifting toward a “war economy.”

Speaking to NBC News last month, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the EU failed in its attempts to contain Russia through sanctions. He made the remark several weeks after the bloc introduced its 19th round of sanctions, which Moscow has called illegal and self-defeating.

In a post on X earlier in December, Russian presidential envoy and senior negotiator Kirill Dmitriev wrote that Germany’s economic woes are the result of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s “stupid & illegal decisions.”

Speaking at a political convention a day earlier, Merz acknowledged that Germany has lost its economic competitiveness. “We are falling behind, and this process has accelerated in recent years,” he said.

The German economy contracted in 2024, preceded by a 0.3% decline in GDP in 2023. Near-zero growth is projected for this year.

Following the decoupling from inexpensive Russian oil and gas, energy prices have risen considerably in much of the EU.