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He recalled that the assassination of an incumbent prime minister was not unprecedented as some time ago Zoran Dindic had been shot and killed in Serbia. This part of Europe is a far riskier “hunting ground” than Western Europe, he observed.
He added that nonetheless the attempted assassination of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico had hit everyone hard. It is not surprising that the level of violence is increasing in Europe. He mentioned the terrorist attacks committed in Europe in recent years, pointing out that next came the war, and the process of the “transformation” of Europe from pro-peace to pro-war began.
We do not notice how radically Europe’s initial position on the issue of war has changed, Mr Orbán warned, recalling that two years ago, for instance, the Germans only wanted to send helmets to Ukraine, while today European leaders – and NATO itself – are talking about sending troops.
Violence or the possibility of violence has become a part of our day-to-day life, this is a tangible process in Europe, and this is a big problem, he pointed out, adding that the number one mission of the European Union is peace, while the number two is welfare. After such an assassination attempt, one needs strong faith to maintain that conviction, the Prime Minister said.
He highlighted that it is our duty to try to contain the quantity of violence in everyday life and the risk of war in politics.
He wished Robert Fico a swift recovery, pointing out that the assassination attempt against the pro-peace Slovak prime minister is all the more painful because – in his view – the upcoming European elections, together with the elections in the US, will decide the issue of war and peace. Slovakia has embarked on the path of peace, and this was a great help for Hungary. We have lost that support now, Mr Orbán said.
He stressed that making a connection between the attempt on the Slovak prime minister’s life and the war was not unjustified. Potent power centres have a vested interest in the continuation of the Russo-Ukrainian war.
He said also to date, there have not been many who have spoken in the voice of peace. In addition to Hungary, only the Vatican shared this tone, and Slovakia has only just “taken a turn in a pro-peace direction.” Referring to the attempted assassination of Robert Fico, he added that Hungary would now have to work twice as hard, and his own job would also become more difficult in Brussels when he was required to fight against pro-war politicians in the debates conducted there.
In his view, while the secret services are still in the process of uncovering all the circumstances of the assassination attempt, we know for a fact that the perpetrator is “a progressive, left-wing thinker with a pro-war mindset.”
“Therefore, speculations which connect the assassination attempt with the war are not unjustified. There are powerful forces behind pro-war politicians and in general, behind the pro-war position. Major, potent power centres, all the way from the Soros Empire to the weapons industry and creditors, in other words, top dogs have a vested interest in the continuation, or even expansion of this war,” he said.
He took the view that the fact that an assailant “shot down the Slovaks’ pro-peace process” coincides with some other, different developments, pointing in the direction of war preparations. He added that pro-war forces were negotiating with one another; this is why “the head of the Soros Empire” and the US Secretary of State went to Kiev, and want to give Ukraine ever more money.
He indicated that barely had the ink on the agreement on the funds to be provided for Ukraine through a joint European borrowing scheme dried when NATO started organising a Ukraine mission, suggesting that the members finance the war with another USD 100 billion.
At the same time, he warned, NATO is not a charity service or a peace corps, but a defence alliance, and so it should not speculate about a military mission outside the territories of NATO countries. He added that both he and Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó will have to make strenuous efforts to prevent Hungary from being dragged into this mission.
He said there is no solution to this war on the battlefields, a solution can only be found at the negotiating table and in a ceasefire, and so “politicians must take control of events back from the generals.” “Instead of soldiers, diplomats should take over again,” the Prime Minister said, taking the view that the dominance of this opinion is at stake in the European Parliament elections.
He further highlighted that the war also destroyed the economy, and today “there are wartime” prices everywhere in Europe. Loans are becoming more expensive, the price of energy is increasing, so are the costs of transportation, while businesses are working with a higher security margin, and the European people are paying the price of this now.
He warned: it is important that the pro-peace forces must not become scared. We must turn against the Soros Empire, if needs be, against US foreign policy, and must make it clear that Europe has a vested interest in returning to the negotiating table, instead of forcing a hopeless battlefield solution, he stated.
The Prime Minister described the demonstration of national pro-peace unity in the European Parliament elections as an important means of staying out of the war.
Mr Orbán said if a country is clearly on the side of peace and gives its leaders support, the government has a better chance of keeping the country out of war than in a country where there is chaos, confusion, uncertainty, instability and rivalry that weakens international positions.
He recalled that at the beginning of World War I, István Tisza wanted to keep Hungary out of the war, and later Governor Miklós Horthy, too, tried to stay out of World war II as long as he could or was able to, but the Germans eventually “pushed Hungary into the war.”
While today the situation is not the same as it was in 1918 or – for that matter – in 1939, 1940 or 1941, also today, the great powers surrounding Hungary “have a vested interest in pushing Hungary into this war, but we must resist this,” said the Prime Minister.
Mr Orbán added that it is not easy to show pro-peace unity because the Left in Hungary is pro-war, they are financed by the very people who hope to profit from the war. However, those who vote for Fidesz and KDNP (Christian Democratic People’s Party) “vote for peace, and the more of us do so, the better our chances are to keep Hungary out of this war,” he stated.
He said in order to stay out of the war it is also important that the leaders of the country “should not lose courage,” and pointed out that this courage must be reinforced every day as one is not brave in general, but rather there are situations in which one must be brave. He observed that “the foreign minister is doing well in this department,” and for the time being, he himself is standing his ground, defending the lines.
Mr Orbán stressed that we must find allies, and while we have now “temporarily lost” Robert Fico, he is seeking new allies everywhere; allies who may not take an altogether anti-war stance, but could become Hungary’s allies in preventing some specific steps pointing in the direction of war. He mentioned Italy as an example which likewise does not want to send soldiers to Ukraine.
So, “the Hungarian government does have scope for diplomatic manoeuvre in enforcing its anti-war, pro-peace policy to some extent,” he added.
We fundamentally need economic, not ideological relations, with both the East and West as regards the future’s cutting-edge technologies, Mr Orbán laid down. “I believe that we have succeeded in releasing our eastern relations from the earlier ideological and historical captivity,” he said.
He recalled that prior to last week’s visit, no Chinese president had been to Hungary for twenty years, and during this period, the Asian country’s share in the world economy had doubled, while that of the European Union had decreased by a fifth.
Not only the quantities have changed, quality, too; there are technologies in which China is in the vanguard, he added, highlighting that the goal of the government is for the world’s best western and eastern technologies to meet in Hungary.
Mr Orbán stressed that China was in the vanguard of railway technology, electromobility, the production and storage of green energy, and information technology (IT), while we have a vested interest in attracting the best technologies to Hungary and becoming a bridgehead, a meeting point that stands on firm foundations.
He mentioned the Debrecen industrial park as an example for the meeting of eastern and western technologies, and then stated that after production, research and development activities, too, will come from China to Hungary.
If Hungary does not want to fall behind and become relegated to the second division, but instead wants to belong to the countries of the world with the highest living standards, we need the latest cutting-edge technologies, Mr Orbán stated, stressing that following from the size of the country, the areas where we belong to the elite based on our own developments are “narrow”.
The Prime Minister described the visit of the Chinese head of state as a milestone from the respect of the Hungarian economy. We have taken an enormous step forward, he said, stressing that we must not believe that the repeated development of blocs in the world “is something predestined.”
He mentioned as an example that while Hungary is asked why it cooperates with certain Chinese telecommunications companies, “Germany happily cooperates with the same companies.”
When it comes to money and the economy, reality points more in the direction of cooperation, the Prime Minister observed, highlighting that Xi Jinping’s invitation extended to Hungarian businesses to take part in the modernisation of China is an enormous opportunity.
Every country of the world is doing the same; in fact, we are competing for relations, Mr Orbán said.
