In rare outreach, Zelenskyy invites Hungary’s Orban to Global Peace Summit on Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and invited him to the Global Peace Summit on Ukraine, which will take place on 15-16 June in Switzerland. 

This is one of the rare contacts between the Ukrainian President and the Hungarian Prime Minister, who has opposed both financial and military aid to Kyiv, as well as Ukraine's accession to the EU and NATO.

“Hungary’s position is important to us in terms of bringing peace closer and our shared regional security. I underscored Ukraine’s interest in good-neighbourly relations with Hungary, as well as in the development of cooperation in trade, energy, and logistics,” Zelenskyy wrote on X/Twitter. 

Zelenskyy did not specify whether Orban accepted the invitation to the summit. However, he added that they coordinated the next steps to resolve the full range of bilateral issues in a mutually beneficial manner and discussed Ukraine's EU integration.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has taken an openly anti-Ukrainian stance and often makes statements discrediting Ukraine. Hungary does not provide military aid to Ukraine and also tries to block EU sanctions against Russia. 

Nevertheless, on 1 February, EU countries agreed to provide Ukraine with financial assistance of €50 billion, including Hungary, which had previously opposed this.

Read more:

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• Orban claims Trump said he won't "give a penny" to Ukraine
• FT: EU threatens to isolate and hurt Hungary’s economy if Orban blocks Ukraine aid
• Breaking the ice: What could Zelenskyy and Orban address in potential talks?