PM Orban Expresses Gratitude to Georgians for Preventing Their Country from Becoming Ukraine 2.0

No one dares to question that Georgia's elections were free and democratic, Hungary’s prime minister told a press conference in Tbilisi on Tuesday. The debates coming in the next few day should be handled in their place, Viktor Orban pointed out. Although the result of the Georgian election is clear, the election itself was free and democratic, there will still be debates about it in Europe.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban putting out a joint press statement with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze following their meeting in Tbilisi on October 29, 2024 (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)

Mr Orban stated that the Georgian people have made a pro-European choice, and added that he sees both the ruling party and the opposition as committed to EU integration. 

In fact, you are perhaps the only country in the world whose constitution explicitly states that all governments should aspire to EU membership.

To question the commitment of the Georgian government under such circumstances is "most amusing", he remarked.

He also said that Hungary is willing to provide Georgia with all the support it needs to become the best prepared candidate country to join the European Union by the end of the decade, adding that Hungarian experts have already been sent to Tbilisi and that they are happy to receive Georgian experts for a training program in Hungary.

At the press conference, the PM stressed that they have agreed to develop their cooperation in strategic areas. An agreement has recently been reached on the protection of investments, and Hungary is also welcome to participate in the development of infrastructure in Georgia. He also mentioned the plan to have green electricity produced in the Caucasus transmitted to the European Union.

He added that four countries - Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Hungary - are working together to this end, and that a joint joint venture between the four countries has already been established, which he called a decisive step.

He said that Hungary gives state scholarships to eighty Georgian university students every year. 

Although the result of the Georgian election is clear, and the election itself was free and democratic, there will be debates about it in Europe. The prime minister suggested that they attach no importance to these debates, as they are common in Brussels whenever conservative parties win.

Cover photo: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban putting out a joint press statement with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze following their meeting in Tbilisi on October 29, 2024 (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)