The Hungarian leader’s self-declared Ukraine peace crusade has now taken hi to Kyiv, Moscow, Beijing and Palm Beach and included meetings with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese ruler Xi Jinping and now Trump.
But Ukraine has not asked Orbán for assistance, looking instead to its own peace plan and punishment for Russia for its full-scale invasion which has now dragged on for nearly two and a half years.
“With all due respect to all countries, big and small, we have to say that not all leaders can negotiate. You need to have certain powers and strength for this,” Zelenskyy said while commenting on the Hungarian leader’s peace mission during a press conference Thursday.
Orbán, for his part, has echoed Russian narratives about the war, while pushing for other peace initiatives, like the Chinese plan which would freeze the conflict, and no financial aid to Ukraine.
Since Hungary took over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union at the start of July, Orbán announced he is using the presidency to take steps toward peace in Russia’s war against Ukraine — despite the fact taht Budapest’s role affords him no special diplomatic status.
After meeting with Putin and Xi, Orbán proceeded to Washington where he convened with fellow NATO leaders at a summit marking the alliance’s 75th anniversary.
Trump, who leads incumbent President Joe Biden in polling in several critical swing states for November’s election, has also said several times that he would end the war quickly — even before he takes over the presidency.
