Opening the press conference, Prime Minister Orbán welcomed Vice President Vance to Hungary and described the visit as a major milestone in bilateral relations. He noted that Hungary has not received such a high-ranking American guest in two decades and said the election of President Donald Trump had brought a “golden age” to ties between the two countries.
PM Orbán said economic cooperation is already producing record results. He pointed to a 50 percent increase in trade and said six American companies had announced major investments in Hungary in March alone, worth more than HUF 100 billion. He added that the two sides also confirmed strategic cooperation in the space and defense industries.
A central theme of the meeting was energy. Prime Minister Orbán warned that Europe is heading toward its most severe energy crisis ever, with rising prices and the risk of shortages in oil and gas. In that context, he said, American-Hungarian cooperation is essential to protecting Hungary’s energy security and preserving lower household utility costs.
Vice President Vance strongly backed that view. He said some Western European leaders speak constantly about an energy crisis while rejecting PM Orbán’s approach, even though energy prices in Hungary remain well below those seen in much of Western Europe. According to Vance, Europe should be studying Hungary’s example more closely instead of criticizing it.
The vice president also made clear that his visit was meant as a message to Brussels. He said some Eurocrats are trying to pressure and blackmail Hungary because of the sovereign choices made by its leadership and argued that this interference has gone too far. Referring to the election campaign, Vance said what has happened in Hungary was “the worst example” of how an external power can interfere in the democratic process of a sovereign country.
Prime Minister Orbán also raised the issue of outside intervention, describing the current election period as one marked by unusually open foreign intelligence activity. He said Hungary had experienced a particularly harsh form of foreign interference and welcomed the decision by the United States to end American financial meddling in other countries’ political processes.
On the war in Ukraine, both leaders emphasized peace. PM Orbán said Hungary has lived for four years in the shadow of war and argued that if Donald Trump had been in office in 2022, the conflict would never have begun. He added that if Brussels were not obstructing American peace efforts, peace might already have been achieved.
Vice President Vance said both Washington and Prime Minister Orbán condemn the Russian invasion, but argued that the real question is how to stop the war. He added that PM Orbán had helped the United States better understand what both Ukraine and Russia would need in order to move toward peace talks. Prime Minister Orbán also said Hungary remains ready to host a future U.S.-Russia peace summit in Budapest if requested.
The American vice president also said Washington is aware that Ukrainian intelligence elements have tried to interfere not only in the United States, but now possibly in Hungary as well. He added that sovereign nations must take such matters seriously.
In closing, both leaders framed the partnership in broader civilizational terms. Prime Minister Orbán said Hungary and the United States had reviewed the major questions facing the West, especially migration, gender ideology, family policy, and global security. Vice President Vance said the defense of Western civilization is one of their most important common causes, adding that while Hungary is a country of 10 million people, its role in the world is far greater than its size alone would suggest.