Hungarian PM visits Russia on 'mission of peace', Ukraine says it should 'behave differently'

Kiev expressed its opinion on Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's visit to Moscow to find a way out of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Russian President Vladimir Putin receives Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Kremlin in Moscow on July 5. (Source: Reuters)

On July 5, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made a surprise visit to Moscow, meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Hungarian Prime Minister's office confirmed that he was on a " peacekeeping mission".

The discussions between the two leaders focused on potential options for a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict.

At the end of the talks, Mr. Orban admitted that the positions of Moscow and Kiev were still "very different." However, Mr. Orban also affirmed that "we have taken the most important step of establishing contact," and pledged to continue efforts.

Earlier this week, the Hungarian Prime Minister traveled to Kiev to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, where Mr. Orban announced his support for negotiations and an immediate ceasefire.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry expressed disagreement with Prime Minister Orban's visit to Russia without Kiev's approval or coordination.

Ukraine is ready to set its own conditions for peace talks with Russia through third countries, but mediators must make public statements supporting Kiev’s position, Mikhail Podolyak, a top aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said on Monday.

Mr Podolyak insisted that mediators should "behave differently". "Any country that is serious about reconciliation will not make empty statements. When they say 'we support an immediate ceasefire', it shows that they are not ready for the mission of reconciliation . Large-scale conflicts require a different approach," Mr Podolyak told the RBK news agency.

After meeting with Prime Minister Orban, President Putin affirmed that Moscow is ready to negotiate to resolve the conflict. However, he said that Ukraine seems to want to fight to the end.

Mr Putin stressed that the conflict could only end if Kiev withdrew its troops from Donbass, Zaporozhye and Kherson, regions that became part of Russia after referendums. He also said there were other conditions that would be discussed during the talks.

Putin had earlier proposed an immediate ceasefire on the condition that Ukraine withdraw its troops, recognize Russian sovereignty over its territories and provide binding guarantees not to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Kiev and its Western allies have rejected the proposal, although Russia insists it is still "valid".

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/thu-tuong-hungary-tham-nga-de-thuc-hien-su-menh-hoa-binh-ukraine-noi-nen-cu-xu-khac-di-277785.html