The President of Ukraine, Volodymir Zelensky, referred yesterday to the conversation he held on Sunday with the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán, in Argentina, saying that it was a direct exchange of words regarding Europe
“On the sidelines of the ceremony (inauguration of the Argentine President), I spoke with the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán. It was a very direct conversation, focused on European issues”, said Zelensky in a speech released yesterday.
The Ukrainian leader did not disclose further details regarding the dialogue he held with Orbán. The images of the two leaders arguing intensely and without interpreters in the space allocated to them to attend the inauguration of Argentine President Javier Milei, in Buenos Aires, provoked speculation regarding the content of the conversation.
Orbán’s government has repeated several times in recent days that it will vote once morest opening accession negotiations between the European Union (EU) and Ukraine during the European Council meeting this week.
The Hungarian Prime Minister has already stated that Ukraine is not prepared to join the European bloc and cited alleged discrimination once morest the Ukrainian Hungarian minority as a reason.
Last week, Kyiv once more changed the law on minority populations as recommended by the EU and, for the first time in several months, Ukraine maintained high-level contacts with Orbán’s government to try to change Budapest’s position in the next Council European.
Orbán has been the most critical European leader towards Ukraine, advocating an end to military aid to Kiev.
The Hungarian head of the Executive has been in favor of holding negotiations with Russia since the beginning of the conflict and is the only European leader who, so far, has refused to meet with Zelensky.
