PM Orban: Europe Must Negotiate with Russia

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban gave an interview to Patriota following the summit in Copenhagen. He said there were fierce debates on the Russia–Ukraine war and Ukraine’s European integration. He pushed back against pro-war forces and presented Hungary’s proposal.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrives at the informal summit of the European Union and takes questions from the press at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen on October 1, 2025, during the Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Communication Department/Zoltan Fischer)

After the EU summit, Viktor Orban told Patriota “there were tough debates and attacks". He described it as “worse than a traditional cage fight,” with Hungary under fire from several directions. He said he had serious clashes with Croatia, the European Commission, and Germany over the war. Meanwhile, Hungary’s opposition has been pushing for the government to adopt Brussels’ line on cutting off Russian energy.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban (third row, second from the right) at the informal summit of the European Union at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen on October 1, 2025, during Denmark’s rotating presidency of the EU Council). In the front row: Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission (second from the right), and Antonio Costa, President of the European Council (fifth from the right) (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Communication Department/Zoltan Fischer)

Viktor Orban: The Pressure on Hungary Regarding Ukraine Is Immense

There were a number of different approaches to pressure Hungary into supporting Ukraine's EU membership, he said, calling some “intelligent attempts,” and others akin to the style of provocation "starting a pub brawl in a dive". He explained their pitch: 

The more intelligent arguments are: this cannot go on. They say: look, 26 want Ukraine in, we don’t, and we won’t even allow accession talks to begin. So they suggest: instead of unanimity to open the chapters, let’s switch to qualified majority voting for the opening, while keeping unanimity for closing chapters. Their message is: dear Viktor, don’t block the start, block it at the end. But I wasn’t born yesterday. If I allow that, they’ll open all the chapters in rapid succession, race to the end of each, and then pile enormous pressure on me: just one more signature from Hungary and everything the others want will be done.

Other arguments were harsher, PM Orban said. "Some insist Hungary is being immoral, that we have a “moral duty” to support Ukraine. And there are also claims that 'Ukraine is Europe’s first line of defense'.” To this he tells them: “That may be true for you, but Hungary does not consider Ukraine to be our first military line of defense.”

According to PM Orban, the EU’s strategy is to defeat Russia in a “war of attrition.” Hungary rejects this approach. “There is no solution on the front line. Hundreds of thousands will die on both sides,” he warned.

The Hungarian position is that negotiations should be opened with Russia on a new European security architecture.

 According to the Prime Minister: 

We need to negotiate a long-term agreement with the Russians on a new European security system — and then Ukraine’s place in it must be found,

PM Orban also made clear Hungary will not support Ukrainian EU membership, but recommends a “strategic partnership” instead. Membership and those rights, he argued, are irreversible and Ukraine’s economic impact on the EU is unpredictable.

“As long as even one member state is not at war — and we are not — then the Union itself cannot be at war,” he added.

He emphasized: “The Americans are now fully behind the Ukrainians. This means there will be weapons, and our only task is to support this war to the bitter end, because, as the proposal argued, it is obvious that the Russians will run out of money, their economic strength will be depleted, discontent will spread in Russia, and therefore they will lose the war – and that will be the time to negotiate.”

I listened to this patiently and said: this is only a hypothesis—that the Russians will run out of reserves before we do, whether in manpower, money, or economic performance. But I asked if they could perhaps tell me how many years this will take until it happens, and how many billions of euros it will cost. At that point, there's only silence. So there is currently a strategy in the European Union that seeks to defeat Russia in a war of attrition,

he stated.

He elaborated: “According to Hungary, instead of pinning hopes on victory on the battleground, we should sit down, send a delegation to the Russians, and propose an EU–Russia negotiation. The war in Ukraine would of course be an important part of it, but not the only or even the most important part. We should negotiate a long-term agreement with the Russians on a new European security system, within which Ukraine’s place must also be found. But we should not start from Ukraine’s place or the war itself—we should start from the fact that the European security system has collapsed, we are in trouble, and we are essentially living under the shadow of a world war threat".

"This benefits no one; we must end it, and through an agreement create a balance of power and restore peace in Europe.”

According to the Prime Minister, Brussels, the Brussels bureaucrats, want this war because it gives them a pretext for centralization: to take away even more powers from member states, to borrow vast sums of money in their name, and to create a common debt. “If a common debt is created, independent nation-states are finished—the United States itself was born from a shared debt.”

Some support it for this reason. Some support it because they smell money. I see those selling weapons, the arms industry— they are in it for profit. In the background there are Soros-linked people hoping that if Russia does indeed lose the war, if it is Russia that exhausts itself first, then discontent and chaos will emerge in Russia. That would reopen the opportunity that existed under Yeltsin: to go into Russia with big money and make vast fortunes. I think such a circle exists—a transatlantic circle hoping for this. And there are different countries, like the Baltic states, who genuinely fear the Russians and believe that the more exhausted and weakened the Russian army becomes, the safer they are,

Hungary's PM stressed.

In the interview Orban added: “The Croatian Prime Minister attacked me at the Council meeting, so I was forced to fight back.”

Hungary imports two vital commodities: natural gas and crude oil. This time it is about oil, which arrives from Russia through the Friendship pipeline. We have no sea coast, so for us both oil and gas can only come through pipelines. The Croatians say they also have a pipeline, and that if we were to bring non-Russian oil through their port and pipeline, it could supply Hungary and Slovakia. When talking about refineries, Szazhalombatta and Bratislava are both in play—both are operated by MOL. First of all, according to all our knowledge, the capacity of the Croatian pipeline is far from sufficient to cover the needs of the two countries. This is a point of dispute: exactly how much the pipeline can handle. From what we know, two tests were conducted and showed it cannot meet demand. But the Croatians insist it can. The other issue is the price. There are two prices: the price at which we buy the oil, and through the Russian pipeline it is cheaper than if shipped by sea to Croatia and then piped up from there. One way we would lose money is on the purchase price, and another way is the transit fee—we would have to pay for the pipeline use,

he said.

He added: “There is also an argument that buying Russian oil is wrong because it finances Russia’s war effort. But I looked at the numbers: we account for only 2–5 percent of Russia’s oil and gas trade. Meanwhile, Western European countries are buying large quantities of LNG—liquefied natural gas—shipped on Russian vessels and re-labeled through India, China, or Turkey.”

Ukraine Cannot Become an EU Member

“Hungary’s position is clear: we had a referendum for the Hungarian people, and they said they do not want Ukraine in the Union. More precisely, Hungary does not want to belong to any shared integration framework with Ukraine—neither in NATO, nor in the European Union,” stressed the Prime Minister.

However, what we do offer them is a strategic agreement. We do not want to abandon Ukraine, but membership is unacceptable. The way they behave now, they act as if they are dictating terms. What happens if they become members? We don’t want to be bound together with the Ukrainians, because that would mean they bring the war into the Union, and take money out of the Union into Ukraine. That is the worst thing that could happen to Hungary. We will not support it. But let’s make a strategic partnership instead—on trade, energy, many things, perhaps even security. But under no circumstances membership. Because once you are a member, those rights can never be taken away,

he said.

On why the Hungarian opposition still supports Ukrainian accession, PM Orban stated: “First, they like the Ukrainians; I feel they have an emotional attachment. For the Hungarian population, relations with Ukraine are complicated—not everyone is fond of them. In the opposition, there are clearly people who are. 

Regarding Thursday’s European Political Community meeting, he pointed out: “It will be much more elegant. It is a broader circle, not just EU prime ministers. Even Zelensky may arrive. The approach is therefore always broader, less concrete, less confrontational. But that doesn’t mean it will be an easy day, because I will also have numerous bilateral meetings on the sidelines, even with people with whom we clearly do not see eye to eye,” stressed the Prime Minister.

Secondly, they really just want to serve Brussels. They didn’t arrive at the conclusion themselves that Ukraine must be let in, not even out of sympathy. Rather, it is Brussels that expects it. Since the Hungarian nation-minded government—and sometimes I personally—are the obstacle, they want to remove us and replace us with a pro-Ukrainian government that will say whatever Brussels demands,” Viktor Orban underlined.

Regarding Thursday's meeting of the European Political Community (EPC), he emphasized that it will be much more elegant, with a wider circle of participants, not just the prime ministers of the European Union member states. 

Even Zelensky may arrive. The approach at EPC meetings is always broader, less specific, less confrontational, but that does not mean it will be an easy day, because I will have numerous meetings, so on the sidelines of the big conference I will also have quite a few bilateral meetings, which have been requested by people with whom we clearly do not see eye to eye.

PM Orban said he does not plan to meet separately with Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday. 

I have no such plan. We would like such a meeting; preparations have begun. But the level of preparation is far from sufficient to make it worthwhile for the two leaders to sit down. It is possible he will attack us—Hungary and Slovakia—again in the plenary session. Today he addressed European prime ministers in a video and named Hungary and Slovakia directly. If he repeats this tomorrow at the plenary, I will of course defend my country—I will stand up and respond,

Hungary's Prime Minister said in the interview.

Cover photo: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrives at the informal summit of the European Union and speaks to the press at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen on October 1, 2025, during the Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Communication Department/Zoltan Fischer)