Today, the most serious energy crisis of all time has occurred in Europe, in which it is clearer than ever before that nuclear energy is needed for security of supply and for the green transition, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó stated on Monday in Prague.
According to the ministry's statement, the head of the department emphasized at the 7th Nuclear Industry Congress in Prague that the European Commission must guarantee that nuclear energy does not come under any kind of restrictions due to sanctions. All Brussels institutions, national authorities and banks must respect this measure, which was already clearly stated when the sanctions were imposed.
"Slowing down and obstructing nuclear investments practically harms the sovereignty of European countries. One of the most important components of sovereignty is the security of energy supply," he said.
"In Hungary, from this point of view, nuclear energy and investment in Paks are key, so those institutions, banks or authorities that slow down or obstruct the construction of new blocks of the Paks nuclear power plant would practically violate Hungary's sovereignty and energy supply," he stated .
Péter Szijjártó emphasized that the most severe energy crisis of all time has now arisen in Europe as a result of the war in Ukraine and the sanctions responses to it, and the security of supply of the continent's countries has fundamentally been called into question.
Among the reasons, he also mentioned that Europe has become "too comfortable" in terms of energy supply, the so-called spot market deals have gained a lot of space instead of long-term contracts, there are many missing elements in the transport infrastructure, and the green transition has become a political trend instead of a professional matter.
He underlined that the latter topic has become a victim of a political campaign, professionalism has been replaced by "political bluffs" by defining different objectives, and an anti-nuclear approach has emerged on the continent following the Fukushima disaster.
The minister pointed out that the market conditions in Europe have practically ceased in the field of energy, so the countries that can produce the energy they use themselves will be doing well and will be safe.
According to his words, this further increases the importance of nuclear energy, since it makes countries more independent from the "completely unreasonable evolution of international energy prices", which is why Hungary is also striving to increase the capacity of the Paks power plant as soon as possible.
"Nuclear energy is a safe, cheap and sustainable way of energy production," he said.
"It is not possible to implement the European Green Deal without nuclear energy. (…) The environment has made it clearer than ever before that Europe clearly needs nuclear energy," he added.
Source: MTI
Photo: Facebook/Péter Szijjártó
