Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán scoffed at EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas on Thursday, describing her recent statement in support of Ukraine as “sad” and “worthless.”
“This declaration is a sad testament of bad Brusselian leadership,” Orbán said in a post on X referring to a statement published Wednesday by the so-called Weimar+ grouping — the EU, France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Spain and the U.K. — in support of Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity as U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin gear up for negotiations on the country’s future.
“We are ready to enhance our support for Ukraine … We share the goal to keep supporting Ukraine until a just, comprehensive and lasting peace is reached,” the statement reads.
Orbán was not impressed. “While President Donald Trump and President Putin negotiate on peace, EU officials issue worthless statements.” He added that a seat at the negotiating table must be earned “through strength, good leadership and smart diplomacy.”
He then condemned the EU’s stance, arguing: “The position of Brussels — to support killing as long as it takes — is morally and politically unacceptable.”
Orbán met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in July last year, where he unsuccessfully discussed peace proposals for Ukraine — a move that drew condemnation from Kyiv and several European leaders.
Following that meeting, Kallas strongly criticized the Hungarian leader of “exploiting” Hungary’s presidency of the Council of the EU. “In Moscow, Viktor Orbán in no way represents the EU or the EU’s positions,” Kallas wrote in a post on X.
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