EU Considers ‘Plan B’ to Bypass Hungary’s Veto on Russia Sanctions

The European Union is reportedly crafting a legal workaround to prevent Hungary from derailing the bloc’s upcoming extension of sanctions against Russia this July, The Gaze reports, citing Radio Liberty.

According to EU sources, legal experts in Brussels are exploring whether sanctions could remain in force without a formal vote by leveraging the structure of EU law — specifically, by allowing the decision on sanctions to remain active, even if the regulation enforcing them fails to gain unanimous approval. 

The former requires only a qualified majority, while the latter demands unanimity. This legal loophole could potentially allow the EU to maintain sanctions even without formally renewing them.

This “Plan B” approach is described as a fallback option if Hungary — a consistent critic of the EU’s sanctions policy on Moscow — threatens to withhold its vote again, as it has in previous renewal rounds.

Hungary has previously demanded concessions in exchange for compliance, and diplomats fear Budapest may repeat the tactic. In addition to the July sanctions renewal, Hungary could also obstruct the EU’s anticipated decision to open accession talks with Ukraine.

Alternative contingency plans include offering new sanctions packages merely as bargaining chips or replacing lapsing EU-wide measures with national sanctions — though the latter would lead to uneven implementation across member states.

In addition to the sanctions issue, Brussels is also considering how to pressure Hungary into unblocking the effective start of EU accession talks with Ukraine—something the bloc hopes to launch no later than June. Some speculate that offering Hungary access to certain EU funds, which were previously frozen due to rule-of-law concerns, could serve as leverage in both matters.

Read more on The Gaze: Blackmailing Hungary: Will Budapest Be Deprived of Its Voting Rights in the EU?