NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is concerned about Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s recent visit to Moscow.
Speaking at a press conference about the upcoming NATO summit in Washington, Stoltenberg expressed the need to discuss Orbán's trip with NATO allies.
Anticipated Discussion
Stoltenberg noted that Orbán has previously informed NATO allies about his visits to Moscow.
"Hungary informed us about this upcoming visit, and I expect that next week in Washington there will be an opportunity to discuss the discussions that he [Orbán] had in Moscow, as happens between allies on a regular basis," said Stoltenberg, as reported by reports Europavska Pravda.
During a recent visit to Budapest, Stoltenberg discussed the ongoing war in Ukraine with Hungarian officials.
"Hungary agreed that Russia is responsible for the war, is the culprit, and Russia can end this war today and stop attacking Ukraine," Stoltenberg stated.
He emphasized that during his visit to Moscow, Orbán was not representing NATO, but only Hungary.
Orbán's "Peacemaking Mission"
Hungarian government spokesperson Bertalan Havashi described Orbán’s trip to Moscow as part of a "peacemaking mission," occurring shortly after Orbán’s visit to Kyiv on July 2. But Orbán did not inform the European Commission about his plans nor coordinate his actions with it.
EU diplomacy chief Josep Borrell clarified that Orbán’s visit was solely within the framework of bilateral relations between Hungary and Russia and not connected to the EU Council presidency.
Orbán himself assured that Hungary does not have a mandate to negotiate peace between Ukraine and Russia.
