Ending Russia-Ukraine war demands change of European, US leadership, says Hungary

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) — Europe and the US need a change in leadership for the Russia-Ukraine war to end, Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said.

"Let the politicians come again. Let diplomacy come, let there be a cease-fire, and let there be peace talks. This requires a European parliamentary election and in America a presidential election.

"If there is a new hand, then the new European institutional leaders coming in after a pro-peace European elections and (former US President) Donald Trump emerging victorious in America can create peace together, basically, with an American initiative," Orban said Thursday in a weekly radio-broadcast briefing.

According to Orban, Western leaders are stuck in an unwinnable war and will eventually have to accept that no military solution exists between Russia and Ukraine.

"Westerners got their feet stuck in this pit. They stepped in it and can't pull their foot out. The public will sort that out. After all, taxpayers will ask after a while, 'why my dear friend, are you sending money to a war where the one you support has no chance of winning?'"

"That moment will come and then, the leaders of Western Europe will have no choice but to come up with some reason and say that there is now no chance for a military solution," said Orban.

Orban is the first European leader to publicly support Trump's bid in the upcoming November 2024 US presidential election.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Tuesday that his country was not willing to send arms or soldiers to Ukraine.

Szijjarto and Orban's remarks followed comments by French President Emmanuel Macron saying that troop deployments to Ukraine should remain on the table.