From Budapest to Moscow, over Poland. Brussels is distancing itself from Orban
The Hungarian state-owned Airbus plane took off from Budapest airport on Friday morning, flying over Slovakia and Poland to Belarus. Reports of Viktor Orban’s visit to the Kremlin turned out to be true. 12 ago, the Prime Minister of Hungary was reported to have landed in Russia.
A photo from Moscow appeared on his social media profile. Before leaving, Orbán wrote on Facebook: “You cannot bring peace by sitting in Brussels. During the Hungarian presidency of the EU, we will take the first steps towards peace. This is our peace mission!” The photo shows the logo of the Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU, although Brussels is clearly absent from Orbán’s visit.
Viktor Orban in Moscow. Donald Tusk’s immediate response
In his post, Donald Tusk quoted the words of the Hungarian Prime Minister, who said that his country wants to be “an important instrument in taking the first step towards peace”. “The question is in whose hands is this instrument,” commented Donald Tusk.
Let us remind you that this is not the first reaction of the head of the Polish government to the plans of the Hungarian Prime Minister. The media reported on the visit on Thursday evening, which is why Orban was asked about the issue in the interview. He did not confirm these statements, but he did not deny them.
Several European politicians, including Prime Minister Donald Tusk, criticized the Hungarian initiative and managed to express surprise at reports of Orban’s planned visit. “The rumors about your visit to Moscow cannot be true. But could they?” – wrote the head of the Polish government on Thursday.
On Monday, Hungary assumed the six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union. Therefore, Brussels quickly withdrew from the visit, arguing that it should be considered part of bilateral relations between Budapest and Moscow.
– Prime Minister Orbán received no mandate from the Council to establish contacts with Russia – EU foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell said in a statement.