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Donald Trump has exempted Hungary from sanctions over its continued purchases of Russian oil and gas for a year, a White House official confirmed to BBC News.
Earlier, the US president said he would consider withdrawing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a close Trump ally who has maintained good relations with Russia throughout the war in Ukraine.
Speaking on Friday during Orban's visit to the White House, Trump said an exemption was being considered because "it's very difficult for him [Orban] to get oil and gas from other areas."
This comes after the US effectively blacklisted two of Russia's largest oil companies last month, threatening sanctions on those who buy from them.
After the meeting, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó wrote on X that the US had granted Budapest "a full and unlimited exemption from sanctions on oil and gas."
An official later told the BBC that this exemption was limited in time to one year.
Trump's decision marks a major victory for Orban, who had said the sanctions would destroy his country's economy.
During the public part of the meeting, Trump appeared to support Hungary's position as a landlocked country dependent on oil and gas from Russia, but did not provide any specific guarantees.
But then it became clear that the US president had granted a one-year exemption, apparently contradicting his determination just two weeks earlier to penalize anyone doing business with Russian energy companies.
Hungary has agreed to buy several hundred million dollars of American natural gas as part of the deal, but it is a deal that is likely to be poorly received in many European capitals, most of which have long opposed Hungary's friendly stance toward Moscow.
Orban has long been a close personal and political ally of the president, echoing much of Donald Trump's right-wing populist rhetoric on immigration and social issues. That loyalty appears to have secured the Hungarian prime minister special treatment at a time when he faces tough elections in the spring.
Trump added that while Hungary faced unique logistical challenges, including access to a sea that could be used to drill for oil, he was "very concerned" by other European countries that, he said, continued to buy Russian goods despite not being landlocked.
Orban, who has long resisted EU efforts to pressure Moscow over Ukraine, has defended his energy ties with Russia, saying on Friday that the pipelines are neither "ideological" nor "political" but a "physical reality" due to the lack of ports.
He has used his country's heavy dependence on Russian oil and gas as a means to maintain his good relations with Moscow, as well as a platform on which he hopes to win re-election next April in Hungary. He has promised voters "free Russian energy."
Trump and Orban also discussed the war in Ukraine on Friday, their first official meeting since Trump returned to power, including the possibility of holding talks with Putin.
"He [Orban] understands Putin and knows him very well... I think Viktor thinks we're going to end that war in the not-too-distant future," Trump said.
Meanwhile, the Hungarian leader claimed that only their two nations truly wanted peace in Ukraine.
"All other governments prefer to continue the war because many of them think that Ukraine can win on the front lines, which is a misunderstanding of the situation."
Trump asked: “So, you’re saying Ukraine can’t win that war?”, to which Orban replied: “You know, a miracle could happen.”
In addition to the issue of oil and gas sanctions, Hungary's export-oriented car industry has been hit by Trump's tariffs on European goods, adding to an already weak economy.
Despite frequent clashes with EU leaders over migration, democracy and the rule of law, Trump urged Europe to "respect this leader very, very strongly because he has been right on immigration."
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