Serbia and Hungary voiced shock Oct. 16 when it was revealed that Bulgaria has levied a new tax on Russian gas passing through Bulgaria to other countries in Europe.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto immediately called the new tax of LEV 20 per 100 m3 “unacceptable,” and both governments also promised talks with Bulgaria on the matter.
The tax represents 20 percent of the cost of current gas futures at theTitle Transfer Facility (TTF) hub in the Netherlands, Europe’s benchmark for the commodity, according to Russia Today, as cited by ekapija.com.
Bulgaria has banned gas for domestic gas, but it remains a key pipeline host for countries still dependent on Russian gas in the EU, including Hungary and Serbia.
Both Hungary and Serbia have long voiced concerns with regard to gas flow, the Ukrainian war and damage to their economies due to gas-fueled inflation.
Szijjarto appeared to imply that coming talks or even legal action would take police to negate the new tax.
Photo of Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto by Agencia de Noticias ANDES, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.
