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The Prime Minister said on Friday he met with the President of Russia for the 14th time. He said it lends special significance to this meeting that it took place in wartime, “at a moment when Europe badly needs peace.”
Mr Orbán said at the meeting he told the Russian President that peace had constituted the basis of Europe’s exceptional development in the past few decades.
“Now, however, we have lived in the shadow of a war in Europe in the past two and a half years, and this is causing Europe extreme difficulties,” he added.
“We don’t feel safe, we see images of devastation and suffering, and this war now also manifests itself in our economic development having come to a halt and a decline in our competitiveness,” he concluded.
In the Prime Minister’s words, we have learnt in the past two and a half years that without a dialogue and diplomatic channels we cannot achieve peace.
“Because peace won’t happen of its own accord; it must be created, we must work for it,” he stressed, adding that Europe needs peace.
At the meeting, he discussed the modalities of this with the Russian President, and wanted to find out which way the shortest path leading to peace lies, he said.
The Prime Minister informed members of the press that he had wanted to hear the Russian President’s position on three questions. First, he asked him what his thoughts were about the peace plans tabled so far and the format for the peace negotiations. Second, he wanted to know what the Russian President thought about the relationship between a ceasefire and peace talks, “whether it is possible to have a ceasefire before peace talks.” He was further interested in the Russian President’s view on the post-war European security architecture, the Hungarian Prime Minister listed.
Mr Orbán stated that he was grateful to the Russian President for the open and sincere talks.
He also said in the past few years, “there has been a steady fall in” those who are able to communicate with both warring parties, and “now there are hardly any left.” Hungary is one of the very few, he pointed out, adding that this is why he paid a visit to Kiev earlier this week and to Moscow now.
“My experience has been that positions are far apart and the number of steps necessary for bringing the war to a conclusion and restoring peace is high, but today we have managed to take the first important step towards a dialogue and the restoration of a dialogue,” Mr Orbán said, observing that he will continue this effort.
