As the European Union pushes to fully sever its reliance on Russian energy, Hungary’s populist government stands firm.

"Russia is a reliable partner. And for geographical and physical reasons in Central Europe, the security of Hungary's energy supply cannot be guaranteed without Russia” Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szíjjártó said after one his regular meetings with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in September.

But some energy experts - as well as critics of Hungary’s populist government- see the country’s commitment to Russian energy more as politics than pipelines.

"Hungary is buying Russian energy because the Hungarian government wants to help arm Russia," energy expert László Miklós told the Associated Press.

Hungary, which currently receives the vast majority of its crude oil from Russia via the Soviet era Druzhba pipeline, does have a second pipeline in place: the Adria, which runs from Croatia's Adriatic Sea.

Miklós said even if Adria were incapable of providing for all of Hungary's oil needs, it can still play a major role in decreasing imports from Russia.

“It is possible to bring oil from elsewhere. The Adria oil pipeline has been available for several decades,” he said.

But Hungary's government has portrayed EU efforts to cease Russian energy imports as an existential threat to a popular government-backed reduction program on households’ spendings.

Miklós said that despite the Hungarian government's determination to continue purchasing Russian energy, EU regulations will soon bring that to an end.

"At the end of 2027, no later than the beginning of 2028, we will technically not be able to purchase Russian energy," he said.

AP video by Bela Szandelszky