War Hawks in Brussels Creating Spiral of Escalation, Says PM’s Political Director

The French President is among the most vocal advocates of NATO boots in Ukraine

 

Hungary’s position differs from that of the “war hawks in Brussels”, while the Russian-Ukrainian war can only be ended through diplomacy, starting with a ceasefire, the Prime Minister’s political director said in Brussels on Thursday.

Speaking to Hungarian journalists on the opening day of the European Union summit, Balázs Orbán called the situation with Ukraine “ominous”. He said that in the past few days, several statements had emerged from serious EU and member-state leaders that were pushing events in a direction Hungary had been trying to avoid for two years. There is more and more talk about the involvement of NATO troops and issues that would clearly represent an escalation of war, there is inreasing talk in Brussels about things that risk the outbreak of a third world war. The stakes are high, he warned.

Peace talks should start as soon as possible and the political leadership in Brussels should be “pulled off the current escalation spiral”,

he said.

Balázs Orbán recalled that the Hungarian position on sending arms to Ukraine is also clear: “We do not support the sending of arms in any context, in the framework of any procedure. We are not prepared to turn Hungary into a belligerent (state).” If the sanctions proposals conflict with fundamental Hungarian national interests, “we will stop them too”, he said.

The political director said it was important for Europe to be able to defend itself and guarantee its own security. Europe’s strategic weakness at the moment is that it needs external backers for its defense, people with different geopolitical interests, he explained. He called the development of the European defense industry and the armies of European countries key to strengthening European sovereignty. In this context, he stressed that Hungary could be a partner at European level in any initiative that would help the European defense industry and the development of European armies.

One possible solution to the war in Ukraine is for the European people to send pro-peace politicians to the European Parliament in the June European Parliament elections.

“This could be a warning that could blow away some of the clouds looming over us,” added Balázs Orbán.

Featured Image:Facebook Emmanuel Macron