Putin-Trump talks in Budapest set to boost Orbán’s international standing — Spiegel

Planned talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump in Budapest are expected to help Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán enhance his international profile, as per a report by Spiegel.

The publication notes that Orbán’s participation could raise his political rating ahead of upcoming elections in Hungary.

“This will be a political victory for the host of the meeting, Viktor Orbán, who leads in Europe a group of countries restraining the process of aid to Ukraine,” the report states.

Other politicians advocating closer ties with Russia are also expected to benefit, including Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, right-wing forces in the Czech Republic, Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, and Sarah Wagenknecht, leader of the German party BSW (Union for Reason and Justice).

The anticipated summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest—announced on October 16, 2025, following a 2.5-hour phone call described by Trump as "very productive"—marks the second direct meeting between the leaders this year, after their August 2025 talks in Anchorage, Alaska, which yielded no breakthroughs on Ukraine.

No firm date has been set for the summit, but both sides suggest it could occur within two weeks, preceded by advisor-level talks led by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The agenda focuses on ending Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, amid Trump's recent threats to supply Kyiv with Tomahawk missiles if Moscow stalls—though he later softened, saying Putin "wants to end the war."

By Khagan Isayev