Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said Hungary will attend the Ukraine peace summit starting on June 15 in Switzerland at the foreign ministerial level.
Speaking in St. Petersburg, the foreign minister said the government regretted that both warring sides would not attend the summit. Minister Szijjártó said Hungary’s participation at the peace conference was driven by the country’s “absolute position on the side of peace”, and it attended all events where peace was on the agenda. At the same time, he expressed his regret that the conference would be held without the participation of Russia. Hungary, he said, believed that a real result could only be expected if both sides were sat at the negotiating table. “This will not be the case this time,” he said, adding, however, that Hungary respected Switzerland’s efforts and would attend the conference at the foreign ministerial level. Speaking later at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, he said: “We urge and pray for an immediate ceasefire… We believe that under peaceful circumstances we might be able to develop much quicker and much more smoothly, and life will again be calmer and more peaceful in Europe if we can put peace in the forefront of international politics.”