Tamas Sulyok is Hungary's seventh President of the Republic, and I had the opportunity to work with all seven Hungarian heads of state as prime minister, PM Viktor Orban told Hungary' public broadcaster M1 in an exclusive interview on Sunday.
Subsequently, I have some idea of what type of president is best suited for certain situations, and which president is best able to serve Hungary in a given situation, Mr Orban said. He described the recently evolved situation as "somewhat of a mess," as Hungary's previous head of state, Katalin Novak, resigned due to a clemency case.
This has also stirred people up emotionally, and I think he type of president who can best serve Hungary's interests now is one who is stable, predictable, well-known, and who can somehow convey his calmness to everyone. At the same time, his preparedness, expertise and authority are beyond question; the former head of the Hungarian Constitutional Court is such a person,
– PM Orban underlined, calling it an advantage that Tamas Sulyok is known to the country from earlier times.
The President of the Republic is elected by parliament, but I recommended the appointment of Tamas Sulyok to the majority factions, Mr Orban added.
There are quite a few outstanding individuals in Hungary who could have confidently undertaken this job, and we know their names. We discussed the options and then we cast our votes in favor of Mr Sulyok,
– the prime minister said.
Speaking about his trip to the United States, Mr Orban said he traveled to America primarily because he received an invitation from Donald Trump, and also "because there was a job to do".
Considering the fact that at present in the realm of politics US-Hungarian relations are categorically bad – despite the fact that we are allies – one of the purposes of the visit was to restore relations,
– Mr Orban stressed, adding that this is not possible with the current administration.
There is a reason for this: Washington currently has a pro-war government. We have a Democratic president and they are committed to the war. We, on the other hand, are a pro-peace government, so we are at cross purposes, Mr Orban said, emphasizing that
by contrast, President Trump was the president of peace.
In the case of Donald Trump, "what you see is what you get", because he's already been president before, so we know precisely what to expect, Mr Orban said.
In his first four years of his presidency, Mr Trump concluded wars, and he was the first president in a long while during whose term no new wars were started. So we know jsut by looking at his record that he's a man of peace, PM Orban said. Mr Trump has clearly articulated his goal to create peace in the Russia-Ukraine war, and us, Hungarians, would like nothing more than peace, a ceasefire and the conclusion of the war within the shortest time possible. “I see no determined, strong man - other than Donald Trump - who would be capable of this,
– PM Orban said.