Hungary's Orban makes surprise visit to Moscow to meet Putin, EU leaders slam move

Infuriating his fellow European Union leaders, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made a surprise visit to Russia on Friday and held talks with President Vladimir Putin.

His trip to Moscow came after he visited Kiev earlier this week and urged Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky to mull a ceasefire and begin peace talks with Russia.

As speculation about his intended visit to Russia swirled and drew flak, Orban, in a veiled jibe on social media, observed: "You cannot make peace from a comfortable armchair in Brussels. We cannot sit back and wait for the war to miraculously end."

Hungary may well soon become the only country in Europe that is maintaining a dialogue with both Kiev and Moscow, Orban said as Putin welcomed him, RFT reported.

As per Russian officials, Putin told the Hungarian leader that he had presented his vision of how the conflict can be resolved in a keynote speech at the Foreign Ministry last month and is prepared to discuss its nuances. His proposal envisaged an immediate suspension of hostilities after Ukraine renounced its bid to join NATO and ordered its troops to pull back from all territories claimed by Russia. A comprehensive discussion of a new security architecture in Europe could follow after this, he suggested.

The closed-door talks between the two leaders lasted for some time and were followed by a joint press meet.

The Russian President said that judging by Orban’s account of his Kiev visit, Ukraine intends to fight with Russia to the end, adding that peace would require an end of martial law and an election in Ukraine, which the country’s current leadership would definitely lose.

He stressed that Russia wants a full resolution of the conflict, not its freezing, which would allow Kiev to rearm and rebuild its military again.

Noting Russia’s relations with the EU are at their lowest level in decades, Putin said that as Hungary holds the rotating presidency of the bloc, he and Orban discussed this aspect of tensions between Russia and the West.

Orban, on his part, said he wanted to hear directly from Putin how Russia perceives various peace initiatives, calling it an important step, even though the frank discussion confirmed that there was a major rift between the conflicting sides.

He declined to reveal the content of his discussions with Zelensky, but said he conveyed to Putin his impressions from his Kiev visit.

Orban's visit, though surprising, was not the first by a US ally following the beginning of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022 as then-Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett visited Moscow in March that year and Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer in April. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited Moscow in April.

The visit sparked fury from EU leaders, despite his clarification that he is not representing the EU.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen accused Orban of "appeasement" and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, who is slated to become the EU’s next foreign policy and security chief, joined the chorus of criticism, accusing him of trying to "sow confusion".

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Orban had informed NATO about his intention to visit Moscow before going there and will have an opportunity to discuss it at the upcoming summit of NATO leaders in Washington next week.