His comments came during a briefing in Strasbourg on Tuesday.
“The Hungarian intention is focusing on managing a ceasefire as soon as possible [...] because we are convinced that you cannot win that war on the battlefield. You simply cannot,” Orbán stated.
He also emphasized the need for both direct and indirect communication between the conflicting parties, adding that third-party mediation is a critical part of international diplomacy. Orbán's government has consistently pushed for peace talks over further military escalation in Ukraine.
“We don’t want to block anything, we just want to convince European leaders to change their strategy [on Ukraine] because the current strategy does not work,” he said.
Orbán’s remarks coincided with Hungary’s decision to delay its approval of a USD 50 billion G7 loan to Ukraine. Hungarian officials said they would hold off until after the U.S. presidential election in November, also delaying a decision on renewing EU sanctions against Russia.
The Hungarian leader, a long-time supporter of former U.S. President Donald Trump, suggested that if Trump wins the upcoming election, he would immediately begin working to broker peace in Ukraine, regardless of his official inauguration date. Orbán added that European leaders would need to respond to such efforts.
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Source: Reuters