Hungary’s opposition leader meets Polish PM, pushes for swift Ukraine peace

Peter Magyar, leader of Hungary’s opposition party Tisza and the main challenger to Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the upcoming elections, met with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. The discussions focused in part on the ongoing situation in Ukraine.

Magyar described the meeting as “friendly” in a post on his Facebook page. “We agreed that both Hungary and Poland must do everything possible to bring about a swift peace between Russia and Ukraine,” he wrote. “We also agreed that after a government change, we will immediately restore political, economic, and cultural relations between Hungary and Poland and give new momentum to Visegrad Group cooperation.”

The two leaders additionally stressed the importance of continuing to strengthen Europe’s external border security. At the same time, Magyar noted that the Tisza party and the majority of Hungarian society do not support the accelerated accession of Ukraine to the European Union.

“We both supported improving European competitiveness and strengthening transatlantic relations,” he added. Magyar also stated that, should he come to power, his first foreign trip would be to Poland.

By Tamilla Hasanova