Politico: Personal feud between Zelenskyy, Orbán clouds Ukraine’s EU bid

A deepening personal rift between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is emerging as a major obstacle to Ukraine’s aspirations to join the European Union, according to EU diplomats, with their mutual hostility increasingly shaping Budapest’s opposition to Kyiv’s accession bid.

The Hungarian prime minister’s antipathy for Kyiv “runs deep,” one senior EU diplomat told Politico. 

“It’s a personal thing between Orbán and Zelenskyy. It’s more than a strategic or tactical play,” the diplomat said. 

EU officials note that any EU enlargement decision requires unanimous backing from all 27 member states, giving Hungary significant leverage. 

The strained relationship has played out publicly in a series of verbal clashes. Zelenskyy has accused Orbán of blocking Ukraine’s EU path and engaging in actions he considers dangerous for Europe, while also suggesting that Hungary is aligning itself too closely with Moscow. Orbán, in turn, has portrayed Ukraine as one of the world’s most corrupt countries and has accused the Ukrainian president of threatening Hungary’s sovereignty.

Tensions escalated further during the World Economic Forum in Davos, where Zelenskyy warned that Europe risked losing its status as a global force and claimed that actors seeking to undermine the continent were operating from within. Zelenskyy said that “every ‘Viktor’ who lives off European money while trying to sell out European interests deserves a smack upside the head,” referring to Orbán. 

“And if he feels comfortable in Moscow, it doesn’t mean we should let European capitals become little Moscows,” Zelenskyy added.  

In response, Orbán said Hungary’s dignity was not open to debate and cautioned that the Ukrainian leader should reconsider his approach. In a video message, he said he was facing a form of pressure from Ukraine that combined threats with insults, adding that while he could endure personal attacks, such conduct was unacceptable in diplomatic relations.

By Sabina Mammadli