Prime Minister Orban: War has become NATO's agenda
In an article published the same day as his visit to Moscow, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that NATO had actually made its ideals more aggressive by abandoning its original “peaceful” and “defensive” nature.
The Hungarian leader, who has been a strong critic of Western involvement in the Ukraine conflict, has repeatedly warned that the increasingly escalatory steps of the US-led military bloc could eventually lead to a direct military confrontation with Russia, with catastrophic consequences.
On July 6, Prime Minister Orban made a surprise visit to Moscow, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. His office made it clear that he was on a “peacekeeping mission.” The discussions between the two leaders focused on potential ways to peacefully resolve the conflict in Ukraine. At the end of the talks, Mr. Orban acknowledged that the positions of Moscow and Kiev were “very far apart.” However, he added that “we have taken the most important step – establishing contact,” and pledged to continue this effort.
Earlier this week, the Hungarian prime minister traveled to Kiev and sat down with President Vladimir Zelensky. During the visit, Mr Orban advocated an immediate ceasefire and negotiations.
On the same day as his trip to Moscow, an editorial written by Orban was published in Newsweek addressing the latest trends regarding NATO, of which Hungary has been a member since 1999.
In it, he highlighted Budapest’s active participation in many NATO activities and initiatives over the years, as well as its adherence to the bloc’s 2% defense spending target. Mr. Orban noted that NATO, which his country joined 25 years ago, is a “peace project” and a “military alliance for defense purposes.”
Yet “today, instead of peace, the agenda is the pursuit of war; instead of defense, it is attack,” Mr. Orban lamented.
“There are growing voices within NATO that argue for the necessity – or even the inevitability – of military confrontation with other geopolitical power centres in the world,” the Hungarian prime minister said. He warned that this attitude “functions like a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
He noted that some member states have recently considered the possibility of deploying a NATO operation in Ukraine.
French President Emmanuel Macron said in late February that he did not rule out deploying French troops to Ukraine. Although his proposal quickly drew criticism from Germany and other members, the French head of state has repeatedly stressed the controversial idea.
In May, Estonia and neighboring Lithuania signaled their readiness to send troops to Ukraine for logistical and other non-combat missions.
According to Orban's editorial on July 6, if NATO does not change tactics now, “it will be suicidal.”
