Hungary's authoritarian leader breaks with the EU, saying he'll pay for Russian gas in rubles

• Orbán is once again going against the EU, and says he will pay for Russian gas with rubles.
• Russia has demanded that "unfriendly" countries pay for gas in rubles amid his war in Ukraine.

Hungary's authoritarian prime minister has broken ranks with the European Union, saying that he will pay for Russian gas in rubles amid Russian President Vladimir Putin's war with Ukraine.

"We don't have any difficulty paying in rubles. If the Russians ask us to, we pay in rubles," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told reporters on Wednesday, according to a tweet by Hungary's international spokesman Zoltan Kovacs.

Putin has threatened to stop sending gas to Europe if countries Russia designated as "unfriendly" don't pay in rubles.

The move is part of an effort to boost the value of the Russian currency by increasing demand for it. The ruble was initially hit hard due to crippling economic sanctions as a result of Putin's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, but the Russian currency has made a stunning recovery.

"If unfriendly countries do not pay in rubles from April 1, we will consider this a default on gas contracts, in which case existing contracts will be stopped," Putin said after signing a decree on Thursday, according to Russian state news outlet RIA Novosti.

The list of "unfriendly countries," which received the designation from Russia in response to widespread condemnation of its six-week invasion of Ukraine, includes the US, UK, and EU countries.

Hungary is a member of the EU and NATO, though Orbán is an ally of Putin.

The Hungarian leader recently referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as one of his "opponents" in his victory speech after he was re-elected to a fourth term. Orbán ran on a platform of "peace and security," telling Hungarians he could keep them safe from the consequences of the war in Ukraine.

Other European leaders have rejected Putin's demands to pay for Russian gas in rubles.

Germany — Europe's largest economy — has already activated an emergency plan to deal with disruptions to its natural-gas supply.

Orbán has taken a series of anti-democratic steps to cement his rule in Hungary since coming to power over a decade ago, including enriching his allies with public funds, eroding the free press, attacking the independence of the judiciary, and remaking the electoral system to favor his party.

Rights groups and democracy watchdogs have expressed serious concerns about these trends in Hungary, as well as Orbán's anti-immigrant and anti-LGBTQ policies.

The Hungarian leader's close ties with Russia, as well as the Chinese government, has been a constant source of tension with the EU. Orbán has been repeatedly condemned by the EU on issues like human rights.

The European Commission on Tuesday announced it would move to cut billions in EU funding to Hungary for violating its rule-of-law standards, after years of democratic backsliding under Orbán.