During the war in Ukraine, the only country that has been able to mediate successfully so far has been Turkey.Continue reading
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán wrote a letter to the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, about his recent trip to Ukraine, Russia, China, and the United States. According to the German newspaper Bild, the Hungarian politician summarized his travels in ten points, making suggestions on Russia and China, among others, and also expressed his views on what would happen if Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump wins the upcoming U.S. elections.
In the introduction of the letter, Viktor Orbán wrote: “Below you will find a summarized assessment of my recent talks with the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, China, Türkiye and President Donald J. Trump, as well as some suggestions for your consideration.” Then, Mr Orbán listed ten points with subdivisions.
The Prime Minister is reported to have called for talks with China on a “peace conference”, the resumption of diplomatic relations with Russia and a “political offensive” against the global south, which “has lost respect for its position on the war in Ukraine”. He added about the Russian-Ukrainian war that:
It can generally be observed that the intensity of the military conflict will radically increase in the near future.”
The Hungarian politician also expressed his views on his meeting with Donald Trump and criticized U.S. President Joe Biden. “The incumbent president is making immense efforts to stay in the race. It is obvious that he is unable to change the current pro-war policy of the U.S. and therefore cannot be expected to launch a new policy,” the Prime Minister reportedly argued.
Mr Orbán, on the other hand, praised Donald Trump for ending the war in Ukraine: “I can (…) say for sure that immediately after his election victory he will not wait until his inauguration, but will be ready to act as a peace broker immediately. He has detailed and well-founded plans for this.”
We continued the peace mission in Mar-a-Lago. President @realDonaldTrump has proved during his presidency that he is a man of peace. He will do it again! pic.twitter.com/8abVBW7f6r
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) July 12, 2024
However, he also warned that in the event of Trump’s election victory,
the financial burden between the United States and the European Union (EU) will shift significantly to the EU’s disadvantage when it comes to financial support for Ukraine”.
This is not the first letter the Hungarian Prime Minister has written to Charles Michel. As previously reported, Viktor Orbán sent his first letter to the President of the European Council on July 5, immediately after his visit to Moscow. At the time, he summarized the issues he had discussed with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The second letter was sent to the President of the European Council on July 8. According to El Pais, the Hungarian politician gave details of his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping. As the paper reported, they discussed the possible scenarios for the war in Ukraine after the U.S. presidential elections in November this year.
Peace mission 3.0#Beijing pic.twitter.com/Jn4ytSWogr
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) July 9, 2024
Furthermore, Mr Orbán also wrote in the second letter that he believes the EU should consult with China on peace and jointly prepare a future peace negotiation. On the basis of the talks, he wrote that Beijing sees itself as an “honest broker” in the conflict. Finally, according to El Pais, the Prime Minister said that Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping expect new peace talks between Russia and Ukraine to take place before the end of the year.
Via Bild, Index; Featured image via MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán
