Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said a possible US-Russia agreement "will hopefully not only restore peace to Europe but the sides may even sign a comprehensive agreement serving as a foundation for global security in the future."
Speaking at the UN disarmament conference in Geneva, Minister Szijjártó said "mankind lives in an age of peril" as armed conflicts became more frequent and more violent, while "mutual respect has completely disappeared from international relations and the world has arrived at the threshold of a new Cold War."
Hungary "is sharply against" the world dividing into blocs again, as the world "lost so much in the past" due to such fractures, he said.
Concerning the war in Ukraine, Minister Szijjártó said the former US administration had chosen "the wrong approach" to the conflict, adding that "neither arms shipments nor sanctions could bring peace any closer".
The Hungarian government has consistently advocated a pro-peace position, the minister said, adding that Hungary was the only European country not to have sent weapons to Ukraine, instead launching a humanitarian campaign and taking in 1.4 million refugees from its neighbour to the east.
"We kept communications channels to Russia open because we believe that shutting down them down would equal abandoning hopes for peace," Minister Szijjártó said.
The minister said there was clear talk of the use of nuclear weapons and "some countries have suggested sending troops, which strongly heightens the risks of escalation and raises a greater risk of a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia: the outbreak of a third world war."
"It has now become clear that an American-Russian agreement can be the only solution ... to restoring peace to the heart of Europe," he said.
Minister Szijjártó said the Hungarian government had argued for such an approach and it was regrettable that "we have been stigmatised as spies, Trojan horses or propagandists".
"And what is happening now? Russia and America are talking." The Hungarian government "may not be right now, but will be", he added.
Meanwhile, he said Donald Trump's return to the White House had "opened the way to restoring" US-Russia ties, and mutual respect in international politics while ending the political strategy based on interference in the domestic affairs of other countries.
"For us in central Europe, it is completely clear that good American-Russian ties can be a basis of global peace", and a comprehensive agreement could serve as the foundation for global security, he said.
Minister Szijjártó warned, however, that "some players in global politics may try and thwart the peace deal". "We must all call on those pro-war leaders not to hinder the peace talks and a peace agreement," he added.
The minister said "a complete lack of mutual trust in the world" had led to an increase in the number of weapons of mass destruction, while arms control mechanisms had weakened. If that mutual trust is restored in international politics in view of improving US-Russia ties, the processes of disarmament and non-proliferation could again be successful, he said, adding "it is high time this happened."
Minister Szijjártó stressed the importance of maintaining the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and called for enforcing the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.