Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's visit Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, termed a “peace mission” to discuss the Ukraine conflict, has sparked controversy among European Union leaders.
Orban's trip came shortly after Hungary assumed the rotating presidency of the EU. This move has been criticized by EU leaders, who insist Orban does not speak for the bloc and warn against appeasing Putin.
Orban has visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv and established the “Patriots for Europe” alliance with other right-wing nationalists. Now, Orban has opted to travel to Moscow on a “peace mission” just days before a NATO summit focused on increasing military aid for Ukraine in response to what the alliance has termed Russia's “unprovoked war of aggression.”
Putin, hosting Orban at the Kremlin, stated his willingness to discuss the finer points of peace proposals aimed at ending the two-and-a-half-year conflict. Last month, Putin declared that Russia would cease its military actions in Ukraine—referred to by Moscow as a special military operation—only if Kyiv abandoned its NATO aspirations and ceded control of four provinces to Russia, conditions that Kyiv immediately dismissed as equivalent to surrender.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized the importance of unity within the EU for achieving peace in Ukraine.
An EU diplomat remarked that Orban's decision to meet Putin in Moscow effectively ended Hungary's EU presidency, which is set to last until Dec. 31, before it had even truly begun.
Orban, who is critical of Western military aid to Ukraine and has the closest ties with Putin among EU leaders, acknowledged he had no EU mandate for the trip but argued that peace could not be achieved “from a comfortable armchair in Brussels.”
Critics, including Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, argue that Orban's actions undermine the EU's unified stance and his visit does not represent EU interests.
During this transitional period, with a new European Commission set to take office in November, analysts believe Budapest's influence on EU policy-making will likely be limited.
Ministers indicated that Hungary aims to make a significant impact with its presidency, launching it with the slogan “Make Europe Great Again,” echoing Preisdent Trump, an ally of Orban.
“We intend to leave a mark,” Orban's spokesman Zoltán Kovacs said on Thursday, before news of the Moscow trip surfaced.
