Visit to Kiev – Ukraine: Orban proposes ceasefire to Zelensky

Such a move could “accelerate” peace negotiations with Moscow, Orbán said Tuesday during his first visit to the Ukrainian capital Kiev since the start of the war more than two years ago. Zelenskyi responded to the Hungarian head of government by saying his country needed a “just peace.”

“To consider”
Orbán said at a joint press conference with the Ukrainian president that he had called on Zelensky to “swiftly consider the possibility of a ceasefire.” Such a ceasefire would be “limited in time and would allow for the acceleration of peace negotiations.”

Orban maintains close ties with Moscow, despite the Russian war of aggression that has been going on for more than two years. The Hungarian leader has repeatedly postponed sanctions against Russia and EU financial aid to Kiev. He also criticized the opening of EU accession negotiations with Ukraine. In October 2023, Orban attended a summit in Beijing with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. It was the first meeting between an EU head of state and government and Putin since the start of the war.

No solidarity visit
According to information from Ukrainian government circles, Orbán’s visit to Zelensky had been prepared for months. However, other EU heads of state and government, as well as representatives of Ukraine’s other Western allies, regularly travel to Kiev for solidarity visits. On Monday, Hungary took over the presidency of the EU Council as planned. Orbán said he would report his talks with Zelensky to EU leaders so that the EU could take the “necessary decisions.”

Zelensky said Tuesday that Orbán’s visit to Kiev demonstrated “common European priorities” of “bringing a just peace to Ukraine and all of Europe.” At the same time, the Ukrainian head of state called on the EU to maintain its assistance to his country. It is “very important for all of us in Europe that European support for Ukraine remains at a sufficient level, including in terms of our defense against Russian terror,” Zelensky said.

Relations tense since the beginning of the war
Relations between Orbán and Zelensky have been extremely tense since the beginning of the war. In a speech after his re-election in April 2022, Orbán included Zelensky among his “opponents”. Zelensky, in turn, had repeatedly criticized the Hungarian head of government for his lack of support for Ukraine.

In December, Orban and Zelenskyi met briefly at the inauguration of Argentine President Javier Milei and had an “open” conversation, according to Zelenskyi. Videos circulating online showed the heated exchange, with Orban standing with his back to the wall. Similar footage emerged after another brief meeting at the EU summit in Brussels last week.

Orban is considered a friend of Putin
In the past, Orban had delayed aid to Ukraine, which was under attack from Russia, and tried several times to avoid sanctions against Moscow. Hungary remains heavily dependent on Russian gas supplies, some of which flows through Ukraine despite the war. However, Kiev does not want to renew the contract, which expires at the end of this year.

Another point of contention is the rights of Ukraine’s Hungarian minority, whose patron saint Orbán has portrayed for years. At a football match, the 61-year-old also provoked crowds with a scarf depicting the outline of Greater Hungary in 1920. Transcarpathia, now in Ukraine, was part of Hungary at the time.

The last time Orban was in Ukraine was in 2015, when Viktor Yanukovych, who later fled to Russia, was still in office as president – ​​and Crimea had not yet been annexed by Russia.