Rosatom

Russian state nuclear corporation currently building Hungary's Paks II plant with two VVER-1200 reactors. - Building Paks II nuclear plant; fuel supplier until 2028

For decades, Hungary has relied almost entirely on Russia for nuclear fuel, natural gas, and oil—a dependency that persisted even as the rest of Europe scrambled to cut ties after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. On February 16, 2026, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó signed an agreement that begins to change that: Hungary can now purchase up to 10 American-built small modular reactors worth as much as $20 billion, and will start receiving Westinghouse fuel for its Russian-built Paks I plant by 2028.

Updated Feb 16

Russia’s nuclear heavyweight, whose global footprint makes ‘clean’ sanctions hard. - Russian nuclear ecosystem influence drives why civil nuclear carve-outs exist

Sanctions are supposed to close doors. On December 17, the U.S. quietly propped two doors back open—again—even as it slammed others shut. One narrow lane keeps Sakhalin-2 crude flowing to Japan. The other preserves financial channels for civil nuclear projects, even when payments touch sanctioned Russian banks. Both carve-outs now run through June 18, 2026.

Updated Jan 30