Only through a “flexible and renewable” agreement can the government’s utility price reduction program be maintained, the prime minister said.

In the long term, the agreement needs to take into consideration uncertainties regarding oil and gas prices, Orbán said ahead of a fraction meeting with deputies of the ruling Fidesz-Christian Democrat parties in Mezőkövesd.

When queried on Hungary’s European Union-Russia ties, the prime minister said that Hungary needs to maintain the “most fair and balanced relations possible” with Russia, which is why he has invited Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to visit Budapest. Putin is scheduled to arrive on February 17.