Viktor Orbán's visit to Moscow comes only a few days after meeting Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.Continue reading
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is visiting Beijing on Monday, where he has met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The Hungarian leader stressed China’s role in promoting peace in the world, a diplomatic invitation for Beijing to take a more active role in laying the foundations for a peace process in Ukraine.
The Prime Minister recalled that for two and a half years Hungarians have been living in the shadow of a war in neighboring Ukraine. The Hungarians are a peace-loving people, he stressed.
“For us, it is of great significance” that China is calling for peace in the world, not war,
he said.
“We also appreciate your peace initiative in the conflict in Hungary’s neighborhood,” Mr Orbán said, addressing his words to Xi Jinping. He recalled that the Chinese President visited Hungary two months ago. The Prime Minister described the meeting as historic. He added that important agreements had been concluded, but more importantly, the friendship between the two peoples had been established for generations, because Xi Jinping’s visit was convincing and cordial, which demonstrated the Hungarian people’s goodwill and respect for China’s Hungary.
Peace mission 3.0 #Beijing pic.twitter.com/DZZFv4qAEH
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) July 7, 2024
Prime Minister @PM_ViktorOrban of Hungary will be in China on Monday and President Xi Jinping will meet with him and have an in-depth discussion with him on issues of mutual interest. pic.twitter.com/5Cj8rQnqse
— 鳳凰資訊 PhoenixTV News (@PhoenixTV_News) July 8, 2024
Mr Orbán thanked the Chinese President for raising the level of relations between the two countries.
“In the past two months, we have worked continuously to give this form of cooperation substance,” he said, thanking the two delegations for the progress they had made in cooperation. The Prime Minister congratulated Xi Jinping on China’s strength and stability, “in this turbulent world politics”.
(L-R) Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Chinese President Xi Jinping (Center R). Photo: MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Benko Vivien Cher
Experienced observers will perhaps also note where Prime Minister Orbán has not traveled yet during his international peace initiative, although he has just announced that he is heading to Washington for talks. Hungarian diplomacy has so far avoided direct talks with the United States concerning a possible ceasefire agreement in Ukraine. Although Washington will be a key player in such a future development, currently it has a single focus on defeating Vladimir Putin on the battlefield, a route that the Hungarian government has been skeptical about.
Featured Image: MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Benko Vivien Cher