HAMILTON, Canada (Chatnewstv.com) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that the Trump administration’s sanctions waiver for Hungary depends on the completion of an ongoing nuclear power project involving a Russian contractor, saying the goal is to help Budapest achieve energy independence rather than punish it for existing ties.
“So the President, it depends,” Rubio said when asked about reports suggesting the waiver could last one year or indefinitely. “There’s a nuclear plant issue that’s already under construction, and they need to complete it. Because it involves a Russian company that did the design and build, we want them to be able to complete it, because we want them to be energy independent.”
Rubio’s comments came as part of a broader discussion on U.S. foreign policy priorities under the Trump administration, including sanctions enforcement, support for Ukraine, and relations with Europe.
The Secretary also addressed Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, saying Moscow has shown no genuine interest in peace and continues to sustain massive losses on the battlefield.
“Well, we can only go by what we see,” Rubio said. “I mean, I think they’ve stated clearly what they want, they want the rest of Donetsk, and obviously the Ukrainians aren’t going to agree to that. So what we see now is they continue long-range strikes into Ukraine, obviously to degrade their electrical grid and try to demoralize the country or what have you, and they’ve made some gains in Donetsk.”
According to U.S. assessments, Rubio said, Russian forces are suffering heavy casualties. “They’re losing 7,000 soldiers a week, 7,000 dead soldiers a week from Russia,” he said. “They’ve made a demand that Ukraine can’t agree to, and so that’s sort of where we are at this point.”
Rubio reiterated Washington’s commitment to backing Kyiv while ensuring that any waivers or exemptions from U.S. sanctions, such as the one for Hungary, are narrowly tailored to support strategic stability and allied energy security.
“The objective here is not to weaken Europe or undermine sanctions,” Rubio said. “It’s to make sure that countries like Hungary don’t end up more dependent on Moscow because of the very measures designed to isolate Moscow.”
Editor: Gabriel Ani
