Balázs Orbán, the prime minister’s political director, said there is a fundamental difference in the viewpoints of Hungary and Brussels as regards the Russia-Ukraine war and their related strategies because Brussels has a pro-war stance.
Orbán told Kossuth radio’s morning program on Sunday that Brussels’ stance is that it is in the interest of the European countries that the conflict should continue or may intensify. But in Hungary’s view the conflict can only be resolved using diplomacy, he said. The political director said “it is worthwhile to support Ukraine”, but he argued for a policy “which will bring us closer to peace”. He said that blackmail, threats and withholding funding for Hungary “have hit back on those who had crafted those plans” because “they received strong international reactions”. “This, interestingly, has broadened Hungary’s room for manoeuvre,” Balázs Orbán said, adding that “we managed to make good compromises in line with our national interests”. In connection with the farmers’ protests in several European countries, the political director said farmers were concerned about losing jobs, competitiveness and the European standard of living. “That’s why change is needed in Brussels because those European leaders who do not realise this and make decisions that go against the will of the European people cannot stay in power”.