After meeting Pope Francis for a private audience on Thursday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said both Hungary and the Vatican supported efforts towards securing the swiftest possible resolution to the war in Ukraine.
Speaking in Rome, the prime minister noted the pontiff’s well-known efforts to promote peace, and said his visit was freighted with special significance in light of the war in Ukraine. Hungary, too, strives for the swiftest possible peaceful resolution to the conflict, he said, adding that Hungary had so far received the largest number of people fleeing the war — including non-Ukrainian students — in proportion of its population, numbering 640,000 refugees. “We are conducting the largest humanitarian operation of all time, for which we are receiving recognition and respect the world over,” PM Orbán said. He said the pope made reference to this and “encouraged us not to give up this good habit of ours”.
Meanwhile, PM Orbán told public media that accepting the invitation of the Holy See followed “a great Hungarian tradition”. PM Orbán said he had formally invited Pope Francis to pay an official visit to Hungary next year, adding that he had received “an encouraging response”.
Photo credit: MTI