PM Orban: Tapping Frozen Russian Assets Is Declaration of War + Video

In his latest Facebook video, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban delivered a blunt warning: Europe is putting itself in grave danger if it moves to seize frozen Russian assets—an act he says is tantamount to a declaration of war.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban delivers a speech at the signing of next year’s wage agreement between the government and representatives of employers and employees, December 4, 2025. (Photo: MTI / Prime Minister’s Communications Office / Akos Kaiser)

In the post accompanying the video, PM Orban wrote: “Europe is getting itself into serious trouble. Touching frozen Russian assets is a declaration of war!”

Viktor Orban: Tapping frozen Russian assets is a declaration of war (Photo: AFP)

Speaking in the video, the prime minister elaborated:

Tampering with frozen Russian assets—confiscating them—is a declaration of war. I have never seen a case where taking €200–300 billion from a country did not provoke some kind of response.

“That simply doesn’t exist. If you allow someone to take a smaller sum from you, they will plunder the entire country. This cannot be allowed. We are therefore at an extremely grave moment. When Ukraine was attacked, this money was there and remained there. The European Union froze it. Most of it is in Belgium, and someone will have to pay that money back. And the company that undertook its safekeeping will have to repay it. That is a Belgian company,” he explained.

This is such a massive business, such an enormous amount—especially considering other non-Russian foreign currency reserves—that it could bring down the Belgian economy. That is why, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, the Belgian prime minister has suddenly grown bolder,

PM Orban pointed out.

As for me, I’ll just have a coffee and lean back. I can’t say harsher things about the European Union or this move than the Belgian prime minister himself. And the reason is that he feels his own national economy could be in jeopardy if the EU goes through with this decision,

 the Hungarian prime minister concluded.

Cover photo: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban delivers a speech at the signing of next year’s wage agreement between the government and representatives of employers and employees, December 4, 2025. (Photo: MTI / Prime Minister’s Communications Office / Akos Kaiser)