Their war, not ours: Hungary's Orban accuses EU of slipping into "two slavic nations" war
Hungary turns down military aid to Ukraine and EU sanctions against the russian federation.
AP reports it, citing Hungary's Prime Ministers statement, Viktor Orban, that he made during the annual hour-long address to fellow citizens. Half of the speech was devoted to russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.
Orban said that 2023 would be the most devastating year since the fall of communism due to the threat of war and inflation.
He added the only way for Hungary to guarantee a peaceful life is "staying a little further away from the russian-Ukrainian war."
"We are part of the Western world, a member of NATO and the European Union where, aside from us, everyone supports the war or at least acts like they do," – Orban said.
He added Ukraine is "not a conflict between the armies of good and evil, but between two Slavic countries that are fighting against one another, limited by time and space for now."
"It's their war, not ours!" the Hungarian PM added.
At the same time, he emphasized that Hungary recognizes Ukraine's right to self-defense. But it would be wrong to put the interests of Ukraine above the interests of Hungary.
Orban added that supplying humanitarian aid to Ukraine doesn't equal severing ties between Hungary and russia.
"We are maintaining our economic relationship with Russia, and in fact, we recommend that the entire Western world do the same, because without relations, there will not be a ceasefire nor peace talks," – he said.
Hungary's Prime Minister also focused on the West's reaction to the war in Ukraine.
He believes that "Europe is headed for war, is balancing on a thin line and is actually already in a state of indirect war with russia." According to him, NATO will allegedly soon discuss the introduction of "so-called peacekeeping troops" into Ukraine.
Orban believes that the full-scale war in Ukraine happened because the West allowed it. He cited the russian-Georgian war of 2008 as an example. Then it was "localized" after occupying 20% of the territory of Georgia. He also mentioned the events of 2014, when France and Germany "made a choice in favor of negotiations, not war."
According to Orban, what happened is another point against the "Brussels superpower" and in favor of strong national states. He stated that when the decisions were made by EU member states, peace was achieved, and the "imperial center" started the war.
He nevertheless admitted that, despite the difference in views, he understands the position of "our Polish and Baltic friends" regarding the war in Ukraine. "But the others?" he asked.
Llast month Viktor Orban stated at a meeting with journalists in Budapest that russia's goal is to turn Ukraine into an ungovernable ruin. So that the West could not claim it "as a prize," and Ukraine, like Afghanistan, is now a "land of nobody."
After that, the Ukrainian MFA summoned the Hungarian ambassador for a frank conversation.
