NATO member offers to host Russia-Ukraine talks
Hungary is ready to provide Moscow and Kiev with a platform for talks aimed at settling their conflict, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has said. His comments followed Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ‘peace mission’ in which he visited Ukraine, Russia, China, and the US in a bid to end the hostilities.
In an interview with RIA Novosti published on Thursday, Szijjarto recalled that a few days after the outbreak of hostilities in February 2022, Budapest tried to encourage direct Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations by contacting both Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Andrey Yermak, Vladimir Zelensky’s chief of staff.
“I told them the same thing: Hungary is always ready to facilitate negotiations, we are always ready to offer any place in Hungary where both sides will be given equal conditions, equal security and equal opportunities,” Szijjarto said, as quoted by the agency.
The foreign minister stressed that Hungary’s stance has not changed. “So if you need us, we are at your disposal,” he added.
His comments come after Orban embarked on a foreign policy tour earlier this month, meeting with the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, China, and Türkiye in an effort to mediate peace. He urged Vladimir Zelensky to agree to a ceasefire, which the Ukrainian leader rejected – later arguing that Orban has too little influence to broker a deal.
Orban’s overtures infuriated many Western officials. The European Parliament called his efforts “irrelevant” and “a blatant violation of the EU’s treaties and common foreign policy.” The EU has argued that any talks over Ukraine’s future should include Kiev.
The Hungarian leader also met with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who has promised to settle the Ukraine conflict within 24 hours if he is elected in November. Commenting on the Orban-Trump talks, Szijjarto remarked that even if there are no current decision-makers capable of resolving the crisis, “you have to look for future leaders.”
“If you look at future leaders, it is only President Trump who could be elected in the foreseeable future and could make a successful mission to create peace in our neighborhood. As far as I understand, President Trump is able to do so,” he said.
