Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has defended Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s visit to Moscow, saying that Budapest is not bound to take dictations from the EU before making its foreign policy decisions.
The EU has banned its member countries and diplomats from establishing relations or friendly ties with Russia over the ongoing war in Ukraine. While the West calls it a war, the majority of the global community doesn’t, since they believe Russia was fighting with just 10 per cent of its forces in the conflict.
The members like Hungary, Slovakia, and Spain have repeatedly disagreed with the EU's stance and questioned its position on the support for Ukraine against Russia. Belgium has also joined the list of countries criticising the bloc’s policies. On Friday, Orban and Putin met and discussed Ukraine, trade, and energy supplies.
The move drew strong criticism from the EU on Saturday. However, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry did not let it slide, dismissing criticism from what Szijjarto called “European pro-war politicians”. In a Facebook post, he wrote, “We, Hungarians, do not need permission or a mandate from Brussels, Berlin, or anywhere else to conduct foreign talks.
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We pursue a sovereign foreign policy, and our decisions are determined by national interests – whether you like it in Brussels or not.” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz earlier said that Orban had travelled to Moscow “without a European mandate”, while Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob said the Hungarian leader “has not been playing for the European team for some time”.
Hungary’s defiant stance of not blaming Russia for the ongoing war in Ukraine has created a confrontational situation between the two sides.
Orban has constantly denied sending troops to Ukraine under the EU’s protection force formula, guarding the peace between Russia and Ukraine in the future.
During the meeting in the Kremlin, Putin thanked Orban for his “reasonable position on the Ukraine issue”. Orban stressed that “stable deliveries from Russia remain the cornerstone of Hungary’s energy security – in the past, now, and in the future.”
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