Prime Minister Viktor Orbán explained on Tuesday why Hungary did not support a European Council statement ahead of the upcoming Trump–Putin summit in Alaska. In a Facebook post, he said the EU’s draft sought to set terms for negotiations that its own leaders were excluded from.
PM Orbán called it “sad” that the EU had been sidelined from such a critical diplomatic effort, warning that it would be worse still for Brussels to issue instructions “from the bench” while not participating.
He argued that the only reasonable course for EU leaders would be to follow the U.S.–Russia example and initiate an EU–Russia summit of their own.
The prime minister framed his decision as part of a broader call to de-escalate and seek dialogue. “Give peace a chance!” he concluded.