Updated: Hungary's Orban calls Putin to discuss Ukraine
Editor's note: The article was updated with a statement by Viktor Orban.
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the war in Ukraine and other topics in a phone call initiated by Budapest, the Kremlin said in a statement on Dec. 11.
The call took place after Orban's visit to Mar-a-Lago and meeting with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. It would also mark Putin's second call with a European leader in recent weeks after the Kremlin's chief held a phone call with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
"Viktor Orban expressed interest in promoting a joint search for ways to resolve the crisis politically and diplomatically, including taking into account his contacts with a number of Western leaders," the Kremlin said, referring to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Hungary has retained warm diplomatic and economic ties with Moscow even after the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, refusing to send military aid to Kyiv and vocally opposing EU sanctions on Russia, albeit eventually voting for every one of the packages.
"I had an hour-long phone conversation this morning with President Putin. These are the most dangerous weeks of the Russia-Ukraine war," Orban said on X.
"We are taking every possible diplomatic step to argue in favor of a ceasefire and peace talks."
According to the Kremlin, "Vladimir Putin outlined his fundamental assessment of the current development of the situation around Ukraine and the destructive line of the Kyiv regime, which continues to exclude the possibility of a peaceful settlement of the conflict."
The parties also discussed energy and economic cooperation, the statement read.
Hungary’s prime minister was the first EU leader to visit Putin in Moscow in July after taking the helm of the EU presidency despite Western attempts at isolating the Russian leader.
Boldizsar Gyori
