US President Donald Trump had a telephone conversation with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Trump appealed to Orban to stop blocking the process of opening negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, informs Bloomberg.
The leaders of the European countries, who participated in the meeting in Washington, asked the US president to influence the position of Viktor Orbán. The call came after consultations between Trump and a group of European leaders at the White House, during which they discussed ways to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine.
During the conversation, the Hungarian Prime Minister suggested that Trump consider Budapest as a potential location for a bilateral meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. At the same time, White House spokeswoman Caroline Levitt declined to comment on whether Hungary is indeed being considered as a likely location for such a summit.
On August 19, Viktor Orban stated that the issue of Ukraine’s membership in the European Union should not be combined with security guarantees:
“Membership of Ukraine in the European Union does not provide any security guarantees; therefore, linking membership with security guarantees is unnecessary and dangerous. Hungary welcomes the steps taken in the negotiations between Trump and Putin and supports the continuation of the negotiation process, especially regarding the second meeting between Trump and Putin.”
In addition, he noted that Hungary will continue to insist on the need for a summit between the European Union and Russia.
