Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó welcomed that the European Union would get involved in ceasefire talks, noting that Europe has made major efforts to help restore peace.
Over the past few days the situation has deteriorated in Ukraine, with thousands of people falling victim to the hostilities, Szijjártó said. The latest developments highlight the government’s responsibility not to let Hungary get dragged into the war in any form, he said.
“We should guarantee the security of Hungary and its inhabitants. This is why we decided not to send either soldiers or weapons to this war,” Szijjártó said.
The government has also made it clear that it will not allow transports of weapons to cross its territory to Ukraine, he said.
Szijjártó emphasized that the channels of communication should remain open as peace can only be reached through negotiations.
“Our Turkish friends have accomplished a feat” by bringing together the Russian and the Ukrainian foreign ministers, Szijjártó said. No one could expect a breakthrough in their meeting but fortunately the two sides did not rule out the chance of another round of talks.
All meetings like that are hopefully bringing the two sides closer “to putting an end to senseless bloodshed”, the minister said.
Asked about who should be blamed for the outbreak of war, Szijjártó said, “now it is time for restoring peace. The time for reasoning and analysing former measures will only arrive if there is peace in our neighbourhood.”
Featured photo illustration via Péter Szijjártó’s Facebook page
