“I’m looking for a solution to reinforce, not to replace democracy,” he said in the interview which can be viewed on Mathias Döpfner’s YouTube channel. He took the view that Brussels wanted to change the government in Hungary, and stated that Hungary would like to reform the EU, but would never leave it as it was part of western Christian culture.
The Prime Minister described national sovereignty as the most important European value. We must find the system in which EU Member States are able to cooperate better because the present one does not work. We must achieve a change in the power structure, and in this he believes that the patriots must play a leading role.
He said it is disappointing that Europe is destroying its own competitiveness.
In answer to the question regarding the most important topic of the Hungarian election campaign, too, he said it will be sovereignty. He added that the challengers of the modern Christian government were financed and maintained from Brussels.
In the context of migration, Mr Orbán said Hungary itself would like to decide whom to let in and whom the Hungarians would like to live together with. If non-Christians are let into a Christian country in large numbers, that also has an impact on democracy, he pointed out. Hungary stopped illegal migration, and for this Brussels punished it, he recalled. He mentioned that there were guest workers in Hungary, too.
Regarding the war in Ukraine, he took the view that “we are very close to peace.” This would primarily require a united transatlantic position, he added. The Prime Minister said it is unrealistic that the EU is supporting with large amounts of money a country which will not win the war and has a high level of corruption, and in the meantime, there is no money to enhance the EU’s competitiveness. If Europe reached a shared position with the Americans, that would also facilitate international trade talks, he laid down.
Concerning the US President, he said Donald Trump is “a man of peace.” Had he been president at the time of the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, with great probability the war would never have started in the first place or would have ended very swiftly, he said. He also highlighted Trump’s Christian attitude, and stressed that already upon their first meeting in 2015 he knew that the western world needed Trump; this is why he has supported him ever since. He said he fully supports the US President’s peace efforts in the Gaza Strip as well.
Mr Orbán answered the question of whether, in his view, Russian President Vladimir Putin has an interest in a ceasefire and peace in Ukraine in the affirmative. He said it is “a ridiculous claim” that Russia would want to attack the Members States of the European Union or NATO. It is not strong enough for that, he pointed out, adding that the escalation of the war increases the risk of a World War III.
“We should demonstrate our strength at the negotiating table, not on the frontline,” he said, pointing out that he would like Europe to become more secure after the war and to see the coming into being of a new security architecture. He added that Hungary’s security was determined by the Berlin-Moscow-Istanbul triangle.
He also said that “the longer the war in Ukraine continues, the stronger Russia will become.” Hungary has old experiences of the Russians, “we know them well,” and so Hungary can be a useful mediator for those who would like to restore peace in Ukraine. At the same time, he expressed surprise at the fact that in Germany “war talk” had become a daily phenomenon in politics. He mentioned that the war would likewise not have broken out had Angela Merkel been chancellor at the time. Without Germany, the European position will never be pro-peace, he stressed.
Regarding co-chairwoman of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party Alice Weidel, he said she made a great impression on him during her visit to Budapest. She has especially clear ideas regarding the economy, he highlighted.
Mention was also made in the interview of the fact that Hungary had been granted exemption from the US sanctions relating to Russian oil exports. He said they agreed with Donald Trump that as long as they were both in office, this agreement would remain in effect. He explained to the US President that if Hungary was deprived of Russian oil, that would result in an immediate several-fold price increase, and would be the end of “millions of families.” Trump understood that Hungary had no alternative as it had no sea access, he explained. Mr Orbán also recalled that Germany had been granted exemption from the sanctions already before Hungary.
In the context of the protective financial shield, the Prime Minister explained that Hungary was historically financially fragile as after World War I, Hungary had been deprived of everything that provided a firm basis for the economy. A protective shield should fundamentally come from the European Union, however, the situation is the reverse: Brussels is blackmailing and is trying to suffocate Hungary economically. At this time, we need the shield against Brussels, he stated.
He said he also had talks with President Trump about the purchase of US nuclear technology because Hungary is poor in natural resources as well, and so it must think in terms of nuclear energy. In the long run, 70 per cent of energy could come from that source, Mr Orbán stated.
