Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán Visits Moscow

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Facts

• Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán arrived in Moscow on Friday and met with Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin, three days after meeting with Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv.¹
• Orbán said Hungary was 'the only country in Europe' that could 'talk to both warring sides.' However, the EU said he hadn't received any mandate to visit Russia on behalf of the bloc.²
• During his first visit to Ukraine in 12 years, Orbán urged Zelenskyy to consider a cease-fire to begin peace negotiations and end the years-long war.³
• Orbán's meeting with Putin comes on the fifth day of his country taking over the EU Council's rotating presidency.⁴
• It was an EU leader's first state visit to Russia since the latter invaded Ukraine in 2022 and Orbán's second with Putin. He met with the Russian president in Beijing last October.¹

Sources: ¹New York Times, ²Associated Press, ³BBC News and ⁴POLITICO.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Washington Post. The West shouldn't trust Orbán, as he undermines its unity in Ukraine. Orbán's actions — such as blocking the EU's budget support for Kyiv — highlight his obstructionist agenda, and Hungary's EU presidency threatens European cohesion and values.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by The Budapest Times. The West's approach to international diplomacy is slow and ineffective. Orbán has advocated for faster, alternative solutions to achieving peace and suggested an immediate cease-fire between Ukraine and Russia to end the conflict. Meanwhile, the EU's current strategies have prolonged the war and caused instability.

Predictions