Orban: West unwilling to end Russian-Ukrainian war

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has asserted that Western countries are defeated in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine but are unwilling to acknowledge their failures, opting instead to prolong the war.

In comments reported by Russian media, Orban emphasized Hungary's intention to avoid becoming embroiled in the conflict despite external pressures, per Caliber.Az.

He noted, "Western countries do not want to stop the Russian-Ukrainian war, raising the question of whether we have room for manoeuvre."

He highlighted that Budapest has preserved "room for manoeuvre" in the economic sector, which has been significantly impacted by the conflict. Orban characterized the idea of a "return of the Cold War" as harmful, stating, "I believe it is possible to avoid poor economic policies driven by misguided military logic."

Orban also pointed out that Hungary continues to purchase Russian oil and gas, having secured exemptions from certain European Union sanctions.

The Hungarian prime minister expressed optimism that if Republican candidate Donald Trump wins the U.S. presidential election, "the party of war in the United States will be replaced by the party of peace," potentially leading to a resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. He added, "Former President Trump will return, and then we can breathe a sigh of relief."

Earlier, Orban criticized Kyiv and Brussels for seeking to involve all European states in the conflict with Russia by inviting Ukraine to join NATO. He voiced Hungary's opposition to this development while addressing citizens on the 68th anniversary of the Hungarian uprising of 1956.

"Over the past 70 years, we have never been as close to a new world war as we are now," Orban said at an open-air event in Budapest's Millenáris Park, where attendees could participate without prior registration. He accused "European leaders and Brussels bureaucrats" of dragging Europe into the Ukrainian conflict, asserting that they now aim to involve the entire European Union in the war.

According to Orban, this is evidenced by Brussels' intention to continue military aid to Kyiv and the military strategy proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He warned that Zelenskyy's so-called victory plan entails "expanding the scale of the war by inviting Ukraine to join NATO and moving the front line into Russian territory."

By Tamilla Hasanova