Kaczyński, who leads Poland’s governing Law and Justice (PiS) party, said his assessment of Orban’s views was “unequivocally negative,” the state PAP news agency reported.
Hungary’s Orban recently referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as his “opponent,” while also expressing doubts over the Russian massacre of Ukrainian civilians in Bucha and espousing pro-Putin views, according to news outlets.
“I won’t hide the fact that it’s all very sad," Kaczyński commented in an interview with broadcaster Radio Plus.
"My assessment is unequivocally negative,” he added.
“If Prime Minister Orban says he doesn’t have a clear view of what happened in Bucha, then somebody should advise him to visit an eye doctor, and it’s a disappointment,” Kaczyński said in the interview.
‘Orban must change his ways’
Kaczyński, who serves as deputy prime minister in charge of national security, stated that Poland could not continue to work with Hungary unless “Viktor Orban changes his ways.”
Kaczyński suggested that Orban’s opinions on the war in Ukraine reflected his hopes of playing a part in ending the conflict.
“But in my view it’s a total blind alley,” Kaczyński said.
Orban on Wednesday told reporters that Hungary would “not give in to any pressure to extend sanctions against Russia to gas and oil.”
He added that reports of atrocities in Bucha should be examined through “independent and impartial investigation” because “we live in an era of mass manipulation.”
Orban also said that Poland was a strategic partner for his country in the European Union.
International peacekeeping mission?
Meanwhile, Kaczyński said that his proposal to send peacekeepers to Ukraine was “the best solution” to stop Russian war crimes, but added that it required “the consent of the Ukrainian government, NATO and the United States.”
He also called for more weapons to be supplied to Ukraine and for “very tough sanctions” on Moscow.
“We must let the Russians know that their aggression is and will be very costly,” he told Radio Plus.
Kaczyński urged NATO to be “more courageous vis-à-vis Russia." At the same time, he warned that there was “a powerful lobby” at the level of countries, big companies and individuals, in favour of “keeping things as they were” in relations with the Kremlin.
‘Poland won’t leave refugees alone’
He pledged in the interview that Poland “won’t leave refugees from Ukraine without support.”
“Naturally it would be ideal if they went to work, but I know there are problems with this,” Kaczyński said.
He noted that a majority of those fleeing the war to Poland were women with children.
“Definitely we won’t leave our Ukrainian friends without help,” he declared.
Friday was day 44 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Poland on Friday reported it had welcomed more than 2.57 million refugees fleeing Russia's war against Ukraine.
Poland’s President Andrzej Duda last month signed into law a measure to offer wide-ranging support to Ukrainians escaping the Russian invasion of their country, which began on February 24.
The measure grants them legal residence in Poland and ensures access to education, healthcare and social benefits.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, abcnews.go.com