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The United States is our friend and an important ally, but we will not allow them to “pressure” Hungary into the war, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated on Friday on Kossuth Radio’s programme ‘Good morning, Hungary’ where he stressed, warning of the danger of the escalation of the war in Ukraine, that if there was going to be a world war, it was going to be a nuclear war.
Regarding the punitive measures announced by the US Embassy, the Prime Minister said these sanctions are not against Hungary. The list of 34 private individuals published by Washington includes one Hungarian as well as persons from Cyprus, Austria and Liechtenstein.
This American campaign fundamentally focused on financial experts, he said, pointing out that while they never agreed with the sanctions, they do not dispute anyone’s right to impose sanctions; they accept and observe them.
He stressed that the Budapest-based International Investment Bank could have played a significant role in the development of Central European economies, but since the outbreak of the war it has been clear that the bank’s opportunities have become limited, and now with the introduction of the sanctions, “it has been destroyed,” its operations have been frustrated. Under such circumstances, Hungary’s continued involvement in the bank’s operations has become pointless, and so Hungary’s delegates have been withdrawn and Hungary has resigned from the International Investment Bank, said Mr Orbán.
In continuation, he pointed out that the United States was our friend and an important ally, primarily from a military policy point of view as we are both members of a common military defence alliance.
He said there was also a philosophical similarity between the two countries, “we share the same fundamental beliefs”: we, too, believe that in order for people to live in peace and welfare, we need freedom and a market economy. Christianity, too, is a common point, while our economic relations “positively strike the image of a success story.”
All the conditions exist for good and amicable relations, he stressed, observing at the same time that America is not united, today it is a divided country and there are major party political differences. If there is a president from the Democratic Party in the White House, relations are more difficult, while if there is a Republic president, they are easier, the Prime Minister said, taking the view that the reason for this should be sought in the fact that on the fundamental issues of modern politics, the Republican point of view is closer to the Hungarian government’s point of view.
The Prime Minister highlighted that “it’s not our job to pick and choose among the actors of US politics,” Hungary cooperates with the government that is elected by the American people. In the United States ambassadors are typically political appointees, and so “we must accept that there is now an ambassador who is close to the Democratic Party.”
At the same time, he said “it is unusual that the US Embassy implements the representation of US opinions through a street poster campaign.” Additionally, “they appear to be a few steps behind” because the posters say ‘Russians, go home’. “We already sent them home, we took care of this affair,” the Hungarians need not be reminded of their own history, he added.
He said the United States has not given up its plan to “pressure” everyone into a war alliance, but we will not allow anyone to pressure us into the war.
He pointed out that – looking at the map – it was clear that the United States was a safer place. However, the same cannot be said of the Carpathian Basin. He said the risks of world politics look different when viewed from Beregszász (Berehove, Ukraine) or Budapest than from the United States.
We have every right to expect the United States to acknowledge Hungary’s special situation, the Prime Minister stressed. “Therefore, we are on the side of peace, and want to remain there,” he said.
He warned that if there was going to be a world war, it was going to be a nuclear war. He stressed that with every passing week, the situation was deteriorating, the threat of escalation was intensifying. According to the latest news, the British want to send depleted uranium shells to the front in Ukraine, while Russia is installing tactical nuclear weapons in the territory of Belarus. Naturally, these are not nuclear bombs, but they are taking us one step closer to the realm of nuclear armaments, he pointed out.
The fear that is lurking in us all – that the further escalation of the war could sooner or later even result in the deployment of some type of nuclear weapon – is not a mere literary exaggeration; meaning that if there is going to be a world war, it is going to be a nuclear war, and may the Lord save us from that,
Mr Orbán stated.
He said the pro-war Left only enjoys the support of a fraction of the people, while the position represented by the national government focusing on peace and security has an overwhelming majority in Hungary. He added that in the dialogue conducted with the Left, they were attempting to find points of agreement and understanding.
Unity is always useful and good, and if a country agrees on issues that truly matter, that makes us all the stronger, he pointed out, adding that he regretted the fact that the Left was pro-war.
Mr Orbán said he was using the opportunities afforded by Parliament to outline the government’s position, rather than to deprecate the representatives of the Left, and above all, not to insult them. He is making every effort to build some kind of a bridge over which they could cross over to the pro-peace camp; this is why the government parties submitted a pro-peace proposal to Parliament.
The Prime Minister called upon the international community to mobilise its energy towards talks leading to a ceasefire and to peace, rather than for supporting the war. The Left has chosen not to walk across this bridge, has not crossed over to the peace camp, but hope springs eternal, he said.
In the radio interview, Mr Orbán also highlighted that in a financial sense Ukraine was a non-existent country, the functioning of Ukraine was being financed by the European Union, including Hungary, and this was destroying Europe.
He added that we were not yet at a stage where European public opinion could force European leaders to change their position related to the war and the policy of sanctions, “but the moment of truth will come” because what is happening now is destroying Europe. It is destroying its security, it is destroying its economy, he stressed.
If Europe and America say no to the question of whether they should continue to support and maintain Ukraine, the war will end, Mr Orbán said, adding that this is not what is happening for the time being. At the same time, the many tens of billions of euros given to Ukraine are missing from the European economy, and so this situation cannot be maintained indefinitely, he stated.
Mr Orbán described the French President’s visit to China as being of great significance, stressing that with this “another voice” has emerged which seeks potential partners, rather than potential enemies. This is very similar to the Hungarian mindset, the Prime Minister said, pointing out that the goal of Hungarian foreign policy itself is to gather friends, not enemies.
He was of the opinion that French President Macron’s observation regarding European strategic autonomy – when he says that the mere adoption of the foreign policies of other countries is belittling for the European spirit – also points in that direction; Europe must focus on its own interests.
At the same time, Mr Orbán highlighted that while today in Europe France was the only leading power that was able to raise issues in a historical perspective, it was a pity that the incumbent president was not called de Gaulle because with him we would easily agree on almost every question. Mr Macron commands respect, but does not envisage the future of Europe as Hungary does, given that we believe in a Christian renaissance, while the French President says that a liberal Europe must be made competitive also globally, he argued.
Regarding inflation, the Prime Minister said in April it could perceivably decrease, while in May and June this decrease could accelerate. At the same time, what has happened so far in the interest of the reduction of the price index is not enough for the removal of the price caps. There are a few products, especially among food products, through which stores are competing for customers, but the spectrum of these products is only limited for the time being, he observed.
In his words, the government is waiting for the “vaccine” that has been administered to the economy against inflation to take effect. He added that the cabinet must continue to work against inflation.
