Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said sanctions against Russia by the EU should be completely scrapped during a speech to his party members, according to a report by the pro-government daily Magyar Nemzet on Wednesday.

The news was reportedly confirmed by an Orban associate, Magyar Nemzet to Reuters.

Orban has been the most outspoken critic of the European Union’s sanctions on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine and made the comments at a closed-door meeting of his party MPs.

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Nemzet claimed Orban said in the meeting that the EU sanctions led to explosive gas prices and inflation, adding that if these measures were to be scrapped, gas prices would instantly drop by 50% while inflation would also decline.

Without sanctions, Europe could regain strength and could avoid a looming recession, the report quoted Orban as saying, reiterating his earlier stance that the sanctions were hurting Europe more than Russia.

The European Parliament recently passed a resolution branding Hungary a ‘non-deocratic’ country, while the European Commission called for an estimated €7.5 billion in European funds to be withheld from Hungary over corruption and witheld.