"The key issue is peace, but that's not doing well because Brussels is in a war fever," - Viktor Orban told Kossuth Radio M1's morning program saying that efforts should focus on ending the war as soon as possible, while EU leaders in Brussels are using pro-war logic.
"We are not supplying nor financing arms shipments," the PM underlined, explaining that the current €50 billion in aid is to prevent the Ukrainian state from going bankrupt. He indicated that without EU and US funding, the country would collapse.
"Time is on Russia's side, the prolongation of the war will cause more people to die. Hungary was in danger of having the money due to our country taken and rechanneled to Ukraine," he noted, pointing out that agreements were reached with the major countries to prevent this from happening.
Western Europe has it wrong
According to the premier, the view that the Ukrainians are fighting for us, and that if the Ukrainians do not stop the Russians, they will march into Berlin is a complete misreading of the situation . "The Russians cannot even defeat Ukraine and therefore could not effectively confront NATO in its entirety," he said.
The Western member states are pro-war and we cannot change this, Mr Orban stated, opining that the German press is operating in world war atmosphere.
"Peace will come when there is change in Brussels," the PM said.
In addition to Ukraine, Hungary's other points of conflict with Brussels include migration policy, gender issues, and the push for doing away with household utilities subsidies and interest rate freezes on borrowing. Mr Orban said the current debate focused solely on Ukraine, and a viable solution had been hammered out in the end.
"In Western parlance, democratic deficit is what they call the phenomenon when the gap between voters and elected leaders becomes too great. In such cases political change occurs, with the populace ousting the leaders."
The PM believes, this is what will happen in June's European Parliamentary elections, where Hungarians also have the opportunity to effect that change.
Siding with farmers
On the farmers' protests in Brussels, Mr Orban said that he had ran into mostly Spanish farmers, who are experiencing the same problems as Hungarian farmers: Brussels's decisions are driving the cost of production sky-high. In addition, products are being allowed to enter the EU from countries where strict standards and regulations do not apply. "Ukrainian agricultural goods should not be allowed in the EU market," the prime minister stressed.
He is acutely aware of the problems the farmers protesting in Brussels are facing, and that talking to them brought back memories of his childhood.
No need for Ukrainian approval
"I'm not particularly interested in their opinion," Viktor Orban said in response to the statement by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry chief that Hungary's PM and FM Peter Szijjarto represent a pro-Hungarian and not a pro-Russian position.
Hungary is not seeking Ukraine's seal of approval. "It's only natural that Hungary belongs to the Hungarians and we represent the interests of the Hungarians. We are not concerned with being accused of this or that," he said, referring to the assessments made by the Ukrainian foreign minister after talks with his Hungarian counterpart.
"There is a very large gap between the Ukrainian and Hungarian positions on several issues," the PM said, pointing out that
Hungary has carried out the largest humanitarian operation to help Ukrainians, with tens of thousands of refugees being granted asylum in Hungary. Ukrainian children have been welcomed in more than a thousand schools and kindergartens in Hungary.
"At the same time, the indigenous Hungarian minority of Transcarpathia are living in a state of disenfranchisement, the prime minister said, noting that this was not the case before 2015. "Now there is a greater chance of normalizing relations, but we will see what happens. For the time being, there is a promise that the Ukrainians will change this situation," the PM Orban concluded.
Cover photo: Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the studio of Kossuth Radio M1 (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)
