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Agence France-Presse

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban urged Kyiv on Tuesday to work towards a “quick ceasefire” in Ukraine that could pave the way for negotiations with Russia to end more than two years of war.
Orban issued the appeal standing next to President Volodymyr Zelensky during a surprise visit to Ukraine, the first by the vocal critic of Western support for Kyiv.
“I asked the president to consider whether … a quick ceasefire could speed up the peace talks,” the Hungarian leader told reporters with Zelensky, adding that the ceasefire he envisions would be “time-limited”.
“A ceasefire connected to a deadline would give a chance to speed up peace talks. I explored this possibility with the president, and I am grateful for his honest answers and negotiation.”
Zelensky, who spoke before Orban, did not respond to those comments.
The Ukrainian leader touted the possibility of a broad bilateral cooperation agreement between Ukraine and Hungary.
Unlike many other European leaders, Orban had not visited Kyiv since Russia invaded in February 2022 and has publicly hit out at Europe’s financial and military aid, temporarily blocking a 50-billion-euro (US$53-billion) aid package for weeks.
The nationalist leader has also blasted the EU’s move to open formal membership talks with Kyiv – though he abstained rather than vetoing it – and has been accused of maintaining warm relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Orban, in power since 2010, met with Putin in October 2023 at a regional summit in Beijing, becoming the first EU leader to do so since the start of the war.
Hungary openly opposes sanctions on Russia, though has so far only sought to hold up the EU’s measures, not outright block them.
The Kremlin said earlier on Tuesday it expected little to come of the visit but described Orban as a “tough” politician who keenly defended his country’s interests.
The visit to Ukraine comes the day after Hungary took over the EU’s rotating presidency for the next six months, a position which gives the central European state sway over the bloc’s agenda and priorities for the rest of the year.
Orban said he would report on his talks with Zelensky to EU prime ministers “so that the necessary European decisions can be taken.”
Zelensky said the timing of the visit, after Hungary took over the EU presidency, was symbolic.
“This is a clear indication of our common European priorities, of how important it is to bring a just peace to Ukraine,” he said, urging European countries to maintain military support.
Despite sharing a border with Ukraine, Hungary has also taken in significantly fewer refugees than most EU members.

Orban’s visit came as Russian forces killed one person and wounded seven more in the southern Kherson region, which is partially occupied.
Moscow has claimed the capture of a string of villages in eastern Ukraine in recent weeks.
Relations have been frosty between Orban and Zelensky since the start of the war.
After winning re-election in April 2022, Orban said the Ukrainian leader was an “opponent” that he had managed to defeat in the campaign.
Zelensky had personally called out Orban for his lack of support to Kyiv in the days after Russia invaded – a position that has only appeared to harden with the war now in its third year.
In December, Zelensky sought out the Hungarian leader at the inauguration of Argentine President Javier Milei for what he called a “frank” conversation.
Videos circulated online showing the pair locked in a tense exchange, with Orban standing with his back to the wall and Zelensky in front of him.
The pair were again filmed in a short, animated exchange, last week on the sidelines of an EU Council meeting in Brussels.


Hungary wields outsize influence over the West’s support for Ukraine, given its membership of both the EU and Nato.
That gives it the ability to thwart, delay, water down or outright block initiatives and funding to support Kyiv.
After a phone call in May, Zelensky said: “Hungary’s position is important to us when it comes to bringing peace and common regional security closer.”
Negotiations over a substantive face-to-face meeting between the pair have been in the works for months, according to statements by Ukrainian officials.
Tensions between Kyiv and Budapest predate the Russian invasion, with Hungary angry at Ukraine’s language policies.
More than 100,000 ethnic Hungarians live in Ukraine, most in the western Zakarpattia region, part of Hungary until the end of World War I.
Additional reporting by Reuters


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Ukraine war

Ukraine war: Hungary’s Orban urges Zelenksy to call ceasefire to speed up Russian peace talks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (right) shakes hands with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban  during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine on Tuesday. Photo: EPA-EFE

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban has been accused of maintaining warm relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Photo: Reuters

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrive for a joint news briefing in Kyiv, Ukraine on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters

Ukraine war: Zelensky preparing ‘comprehensive plan’ to end Russia conflict

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is preparing a plan to end the war with Russia. Photo: AFP

Nato picks Rutte, Putin critic and ‘Trump whisperer’, to replace Stoltenberg as next boss

Nato’s 32 nations on Wednesday appointed departing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the alliance’s next head, at a vital time with Russia waging war in Ukraine. Photo: AFP

The Netherlands’ outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte (right) will replace Jens Stoltenberg (left) as the head of Nato. Photo: AFP

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte (right) shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on May 4, 2023. Photo: AFP

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte (right) has been labelled the “Trump Whisperer” for his ability to manage former US president Donald Trump. Photo: AFP

Kaja Kallas, Estonia’s ‘Iron Lady’, picked as EU top diplomat

Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas arrives for the first day of a EU leaders Summit in Brussels in October 2022. Photo: AFP

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas take part in a signing ceremony for a security pact in Brussels on Thursday. Photo: EPA-EFE

Workers remove a Soviet T-34 tank installed as a monument in Narva, Estonia, in August 2022. Photo: AP

Ukraine starts ‘historic’ EU membership talks amid war with Russia

Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Olga Stefanishyna (left) listens to Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib during a press conference at the EU Council building in Luxembourg on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky poses for a picture before an EU summit in Brussels in February. Photo: AP

Moldova’s Prime Minister Dorin Recean waits for the start of the EU-Moldova Association Council at the European Council building in Brussels in May. Photo: AP

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Orban has blasted the EU’s move to open formal membership talks with Kyiv, and has been accused of maintaining warm relations with Russia’s Putin


The nationalist leader has blasted the EU’s move to open formal membership talks with Kyiv, and has been accused of maintaining warm relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
