Orban, who is referred to as the EU’s most Putin-friendly prime minister, landed in the Ukrainian capital just before eight o’clock on Tuesday morning. There he will meet President Volodomy Zelenskyi. The two will discuss the possibility of creating peace and bilateral relations, according to Orban’s spokesperson to Reuters. Brake pad for Ukrainian support The visit to Kyiv takes place the day after Hungary took over the chairmanship of the EU’s Council of Ministers. The presidency of this council rotates, and Orban gets to sit for the next six months. Orban has been outspokenly critical of the West sending military support to Ukraine. He is one of the few Western leaders who has met Putin since the war started, and one of the few who has not visited Ukraine during the same period. Of the EU’s 27 heads of state, Orban is the only one who received a New Year’s greeting from Putin on the eve of 2023. During a meeting between EU leaders in December, Orban left the room to avoid voting against a proposal to open membership negotiations for Ukraine. The Orban government has also vetoed seven bills that would have given weapons worth more than 6 billion euros to Ukraine. The proposal received support from the other 26 member states. His government claims that Kyiv fails to guarantee the rights of the Hungarian minority in the country, and that they therefore cannot gain full EU membership. “Make Europe great again” The presidency is mostly symbolic, and the Council of Ministers adopts the laws proposed by the European Commission. But it gives Orban the power to set the EU’s agenda for the rest of 2024. He enters the leadership under the slogan “Make Europe Great Again”, an open reference to Donald Trump’s election campaign motto in the USA. He likes to make the same reference in speeches on home soil as well, “making Hungary great again”. Because even though he now holds a top position in the EU, the prime minister is known as the union’s troublemaker. Zelenskyj congratulated Orban on the presidency at X yesterday. Photo: Skjermdump, X / Skjermdump, X In recent years, he has taken advantage of several opportunities to block, water down or postpone important decisions in the EU, especially in fields where the rest of the union has mostly been in sync, such as the war in Ukraine and relations to Russia and China. Especially because Orban has blocked several attempts at support packages for Ukraine and sanctions against Russia, several EU commissioners are reacting Eva Sarfi, senior lecturer in East European studies at UiO, points to a difference between the Hungarian people and the Orban government when it comes to the EU . – The vast majority of people believe that Hungary is part of Europe, and are positive about the EU. But the government is skeptical, she tells news on Tuesday morning. Orban does not want to leave the union, but has made it clear that he wants to change it – from within. During the election campaign for the European Parliament in June, he talked about “taking over Brussels”. On Sunday, he launched a new alliance to the European Parliament called “Patriots for Europe” together with the Austrian far-right Freedom Party (FPO) and the leader of the Czech populist party ANO. The three leaders signed a “patriotic manifesto” with promises of peace, security and development instead of “war, immigration and stagnation”, which they believe the “Brussels elite” has introduced. – Hungary wishes to receive as much money as possible from the EU, which has until now blocked some funds for them. They want to show their voters that they can carry out the policy they have promised them, says Sarfi. In this sense, the chairmanship of the Council of Ministers is an opportunity to do just this. The period also gives Orban time in the diplomatic spotlight. The visit to Kyiv is a kick start. Published 02.07.2024, at 09.25
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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s first visit to Ukraine during the war – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
