Kyiv (AFP)
During a visit to Kyiv yesterday after his country took over the presidency of the European Union, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to consider a “ceasefire” quickly, which contradicts the positions of the Ukrainians and their European allies.
“I asked the president to consider the possibility of an immediate ceasefire,” said Orban, the only EU leader to maintain close ties with the Kremlin after the war in Ukraine, “that would be time-bound and allow for the acceleration of peace talks.”
Orban, whose country has held the presidency of the European Council for six months since the beginning of July, considered that the Ukrainian president’s “initiatives” “take a long time and are slow and complicated due to the rules of international diplomacy.”
He added that the talks with Zelensky were “frank,” saying: “I will certainly inform the European Council about the content of these talks to take the necessary European decisions.”
The Ukrainian president did not respond to Orban’s proposal during a press conference, but later announced that he had asked Orban to “join” Ukrainian peace efforts.
“I have invited Hungary and Prime Minister Orban to join the efforts” to organize a summit for peace in Ukraine, Zelensky said in his daily statement, effectively rejecting the request.
Zelensky reiterated during a press conference that Orban’s visit shows “common European priorities, and the importance of achieving a just peace in Ukraine and throughout Europe.”
The Ukrainian president also called for maintaining an “adequate level” of military aid from Europe to Kiev.
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