"We will not send weapons; neither will weapons be allowed through Hungarian territory on the way to Ukraine; and a no-fly zone is off the table," Orbán said, adding that "This is good news for Hungary."Continue reading
Five nations to date have indicated their intention to join the Hungarian battalion battle group, Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s foreign minister, said after NATO’s extraordinary summit in Brussels on Thursday.
Hungary continues to give priority to “not being dragged” into the war in its neighbourhood, Szijjártó said on Facebook, adding that from this point of view the summit’s results met Hungary’s expectations and dovetailed with its national interests.
Szijjártó called it a major achievement that NATO had reinforced its position that it is not, and does not wish to become, a belligerent party in the conflict.
“Every possible effort should be made to prevent the war from escalating and spilling beyond the borders of Ukraine,” he said.
Szijjártó said NATO had decided to set up eight battalion battel groups on its eastern-southeastern flank to beef up its military presence in the region. The Hungarian battle group already established has been operating within NATO’s framework under Hungarian command, he said.
The combat team is open to troops of other NATO member states, Szijjártó said, adding that five countries — the United States, Turkey, Croatia, Montenegro and Italy — had indicated their intention to delegate hundreds of soldiers to the unit.
The troops concerned will be stationed west of the Danube and involved in joint training and exercises, he said.
Featured photo via Péter Szijjártó’s Facebook page
