"After the end of the Cold War thirty years ago, there was a notion that the constant readiness achieved through conscription, was no longer necessary," Viktor Orban told public radio Kossuth's "Good Morning, Hungary!" program, where the first question the PM was asked pertained to plans of reinstating conscription in Europe. Soldiers are some of the most useful and most dependable elements of society, according to Mr Orban, who also stressed that in Hungary the reintroduction of conscription is not on the agenda.
"Elsewhere, they are in the process of reintroducing the practice. This is a matter for each nation to decide, we don't have to concern ourselves with it," he said and labeled as unacceptable the European People's Party (EPP) chief Manfred Weber's plan to reintroduce EU-wide conscription. This would mean that someone else would be deciding over Hungarians' blood, he noted, saying that such ideas have to be quickly dismissed,
such seeds must be turned out of the soil to prevent them from even accidentally sprouting.
Each week we are getting closer to war
Since last Friday's Kossuth Radio interview, we have once again come closer to war. Two things happened this past week: talks between France and Ukraine have started about deploying French training officers to Ukraine. This represents a new level of engagement, according to PM Orban, if the French agree to it.
The second is increasing talk that the weapons supplied by the West to Ukraine can now be used not only for defense but also for attack.
"This will spark a massive debate about how Ukrainian the weapons that are fired at Russian territory are. Without NATO, Ukraine would not be able to fire on Russia's territory, but this way it can, so again we are taking yet another step in the engagement process," he indicated.
The Russians say they attacked Ukraine to prevent it from joining NATO. They also say that they will occupy sufficient territory to prevent Kyiv firepower range from reaching Russian soil. Moscow has stated that the better the weapons that are fired at them, the further in they will advance.
The Prime Minister stressed that Being drawn into war does not happen in one step, the PM stressed, listing the three phases of the process: talk, preparation and destruction. We are now beyond the talking stage and in the preparation stage,
mere inches away from destruction.
The major European states are farther away from Russia than Central Europe is. As he put it, from France and from the shores of the Atlantic, Ukraine and we are seen as buffer zones, just as they have always viewed us. "Their sense of security is much stronger, they have won wars and they want to defeat Russia," he added.
Correspondence between Horthy and Hitler is instructive even today
Hungary was forced into both the First and the Second World Wars, Viktor Orban said. The surviving parts of the correspondence between Horthy and Hitler clearly reveal that Hungary and the Hungarian government were under enormous pressure during the Second World War, he noted. "We are moving in this direction, as the pressure on us increases with each EU summit. We must resist this, because we do not want to shed Hungarian blood for Ukraine. For us, the interests of Hungarians are the most important, and this war is not being fought in our interests," he said.
The prime minister indicated that he regularly argues that NATO is a defense alliance that was not created to intervene in a conflict outside of NATO. "It's absurd," he underlined.
Peace march: We must say out that we are balancing between war and peace
At tomorrow's peace march, where PM Orban will also speak, participants must say out that we are balancing between peace and war, expressing that we feel the danger, he said. The left claims that there is no danger of war, but it must be voiced that there is, he added.
It must be said out that anyone who talks like a warmonger, who sends weapons like a warmonger, who wants to send soldiers like a warmonger, is a warmonger.
This applies to the European Left, applies to the Hungarian Left and to Soros's network that finances them.
We Hungarians believe that Europe cannot endure another war, PM Orban opined. This was the founding principle of the European Union, he added, it was a peace project. Instead of investing EU money in the Europe's economy, we are sending it to war, he pointed out.
If we send all our money to Ukraine, how are we going to restart the European economy? The voice of pro-peace Europeans is growing stronger, which cannot be ignored,
he said. By making a good choice in the European elections pro-war forces must be steered off this path.
At the beginning of every war, a kind of moral pressure was put on people, the prime minister said. The public was led to believe that anyone who did not stand up for the war was morally wrong. "History is there to learn from and these four or five years should be saved," he added. According to Viktor Orban, those who want to win this war are condemning themselves to war and risk a world war. He believes that we should take back the initiative and reach a ceasefire.
What is at stake in the elections?
"When we look back at this election, maybe we will say that this was the point when the trouble started," Viktor Orban said, referring to the elections to be held in a week's time. He highlighted
if leaders decide that peace is more important, there will be no war.
"We have democracies in Europe, and we must force the leaders to make pro-peace decisions. Pro-war politicians must be voted out and replaced by pro-peace politicians. Today in Hungary, only the alliance of the Fidesz and the Christian Democrats (KDNP) stands up for peace. We must send them to the EP if we want peace, PM Orban said in conclusion of the interview.
Cover photo: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (Photo: MTI/Hungarian PM's Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)
