Hungary has received an extension from the US for sanctions relief, allowing Budapest to make payments to Gazprombank, as announced today (March 21, 2025) by Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó. Washington imposed new sanctions last year on the Russian Gazprombank, one of Russia’s largest banks that accepts gas payments from Gazprom’s European customers due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The announcement was made during a press conference with Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan in Ankara as part of an official visit. Speaking through a translator, Szijjártó also mentioned Hungary is in talks with Turkey’s state pipeline operator BOTAS to purchase natural gas directly from Turkey in 2025. Yesterday, sources told Reuters that Turkey and Slovakia also received similar extensions from the US for sanctions relief to pay for Russian gas.