A row over the end of Russian gas flows via Ukraine has intensified as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban threatened to block the next rollover of EU sanctions against Russia unless Brussels helps to achieve a restart of supply.

The European Union has agreed to prolong for 6 months a raft of sanctions aimed at depriving Russia of funds to finance its war against Ukraine.

The European Union is set to extend sanctions on Russia over its war against Ukraine on Monday, with Hungary ready to lift its opposition to the move, according to people familiar with the matter.

The European Commission refrained from proposing a ban on Russian liquefied natural gas in its latest sanctions package as EU member states expressed concerns over securing alternative energy sources.

The European Union on Monday sanctioned three officers of a Russian military intelligence unit accused of being behind a series of cyberattacks targeting Estonia in 2020.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban threatened on Friday to block the next rollover of EU sanctions against Russia unless Brussels helps achieve a restart of Russian gas transit via Ukraine, which was halted on Jan.

Hungary's representatives have not yet agreed to a decision on the extension of EU sanctions against Russia. The issue will be considered at an EU Council meeting at foreign minister level on Monday,

The European Union (EU) has been placing sanctions on Russia since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine. These sanctions are meant to pressure Russia into stopping its attacks. However, the EU can only continue these sanctions if every country in the group agrees.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, following Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, has declared that Budapest will block the next extension of EU sanctions against Russia unless Ukraine "refrains from measures that harm Hungary’s energy security".