Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, had talks with his Russian and Vatican counterparts on Thursday on the sidelines of the OSCE foreign ministers' council meeting in Valletta.
After talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, Minister Szijjártó pledged to continue pursuing the "Hungarian peace mission", saying the war in Ukraine may be closer than ever in light of the US presidential election, yet the risk of escalation was now at its peak.
To ensure that peace remains viable by January 20, "everything must be done now to keep the channels of communication open," he said in a Facebook post, adding that the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe was the "last suitable forum" for this.
Instead of encouraging Ukraine to lower the conscription age, "we should work towards a ceasefire and peace," he added.
Meanwhile, referring to a meeting with Paul Richard Gallagher, his Vatican counterpart, Minister Szijjártó said Hungary highly valued the Holy See's "wise, pro-peace" position.
He said they were in agreement that striving for peace was "not a sign of weakness but of courage". "Archbishop Gallagher encouraged us to pursue our efforts to save lives, establish peace and keep the channels of communication open," he said.
Minister Szijjártó added that Christian communities around the world were being persecuted, "and this must be stopped". He said the atrocities against Christians in Aleppo were especially worrying.
"Hungary will carry on providing humanitarian aid with a view to protecting Christian communities facing hardships," he said.