It became known how Washington managed to convince Budapest to "back down" and withdraw objections to the extension of EU anti-Russian sanctions, which expired in January this year. According to the Politico newspaper,

The EU Friday agreed to drop three Russian individuals from its sanctions list as the price for Hungary's Viktor Orban to drop a threat to veto Europe's sanctions against Russia.

The European Union has reached a deal with Hungary to renew sanctions on more than 2,400 primarily Russian entities and individuals hours before they were set to expire on March 15, an EU official with knowledge of the negotiations told the Kyiv independent.

The European Union agreed on Friday to renew sanctions on Russian individuals and entities but kept Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman on the list despite pressure from Hungary, EU diplomats said. EU sanctions must be renewed every six months in a unanimous vote by the 27 member states' ambassadors to Brussels.

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has announced that Tallinn has imposed national sanctions against four Russian citizens who were removed from the EU sanctions list at Hungary's insistence. Source: European Pravda Details: Tsahkna noted that amid discussions in the European Union about extending sanctions,

The EU has removed three Russian oligarchs from the latest sanctions list under pressure from Hungary, Vedomosti reported on March 14 citing Bloomberg. EU sources say the three unnamed Russian citizens were removed from the sanctions list and the EU has begun the so-called written procedure,

The EU has agreed to remove four individuals from its sanctions list against Russia after a delay from Hungary, AFP and Reuters reported Friday, paving the way for the bloc to extend restrictions on more than 2,

The European Union (EU) is facing a major challenge as Hungary is threatening to block the renewal of sanctions against around 2,000 Russian individuals. These sanctions include travel restrictions and the freezing of assets belonging to politicians and business figures believed to have supported Russia’s war efforts in Ukraine.