Hungary’s Prime Minister emphasizes the importance of contacts with Russia and accuses Ukraine of “cheating”. Orbán cited the fact that Hungary managed to stay out of the Ukraine war as a success in 2022.
Right-wing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s 24th state-of-the-nation address on Saturday at a major event in Budapest was marred by Russia’s war against Ukraine, EU sanctions and the energy crisis. Orbán described 2023 as the most dangerous year since the political change.
Orbán also referred to the two-thirds victory of the ruling Fidesz party in the spring 2022 parliamentary elections and the government’s “extraordinary achievements”. He also addressed migration policy and criticized Brussels and the Hungarian opposition.
Russia ‘no threat’ to Hungary
As a success of 2022, Orbán said Hungary managed to stay out of the war in Ukraine, which could last for years. It is not easy to stay out of this, as in NATO and the EU, except Hungary, everyone is on the side of the war, or at least they claim to be. Hungary would recognize that Ukraine was defending its own sovereignty, but morally it was wrong to put Ukraine’s interests ahead of Hungary’s.
In addition to rejecting EU sanctions, the prime minister also emphasized that Hungary maintains economic relations with Russia, which he also recommended to the West. The war in Ukraine would show that Russia didn’t stand a chance against NATO. Orbán, for his part, accused Ukraine of “deception” because he wanted to make it credible that the Russians “will not stop until the ocean”.
At the same time, the prime minister emphasized Hungary’s “great humanitarian aid” to Ukrainian refugees. According to Orbán, Russia does not pose a real threat to Hungary’s security.