Donald Trump will not contribute a penny to the Ukrainian-Russian war, so the war will end, which coincides with the interests of Hungary.
Tamás Sulyok is a president of the republic who is stable, predictable, well-known, and who can convey his calmness to all of us - the Prime Minister stated in an interview with the current channel m1 on Sunday.
Viktor Orbán indicated that Tamás Sulyok, who was installed on Sunday, is the seventh president of the Republic of Hungary, and he was able to work with all seven Hungarian heads of state as prime minister.
That is why he has an idea about "what kind of president is suitable for which situation", which president can best serve Hungary in a given situation.
Now it was an "upset" situation, because the previous president of the republic, Katalin Novák, left due to the pardon case, and this also stirred up people emotionally, the Prime Minister pointed out. According to the Prime Minister, a president who is stable, calm, predictable, well-known and able to convey calmness to all of us can best serve the interests of Hungary, all while his preparation, expertise and authority are beyond dispute. The former president of the Constitutional Court is such a person - stated Viktor Orbán, calling it an advantage that the country already knows Tamás Sulyok from before.
The prime minister explained: the president of the republic is elected by the parliament, he made a proposal to the majority factions, and Tamás Sulyok was elected. Several names came up, as Hungary is an intellectually particularly strong country, so there are quite a few excellent people who could have bravely taken on this job, he added.
The same opportunity also existed for the left, because representatives in the minority can also nominate the president of the republic, but now they did not take advantage of this opportunity, Viktor Orbán noted.
The prime minister emphasized: Tamás Sulyok is the president nominated by Hungarian parliamentarians and elected by them. Since the representatives are elected by the people, the president is elected by the people, although through transfer, he added.
Viktor Orbán also spoke about the fact that even before he made a proposal to the factions, he asked for a meeting with Tamás Sulyok. He indicated to him that the faction had not yet decided, that there were some prominent people in Hungary that they were thinking of, but he was one of them, and asked if he would say yes if the representatives asked him. During the conversation, quite a few foreign policy, moral, and constitutional issues came up, but since they had not met for the first time, but had known each other for a long time, his views were known to the prime minister and the faction.
The prime minister described Tamás Sulyok as a deeply religious, Catholic man who does not see the invitation as vanity or a personal matter, but as a service. We will now have a president who will serve his country "from his heels to his ears" with every cell, devotedly and as a believer, he pointed out.
Viktor Orbán commented that although the new head of state has only been in office for a few days, there have already been attacks: "this is Hungary, this is how it is".
Speaking about his American trip, the Prime Minister said in the interview: he went to the United States primarily because he was invited by former American President Donald Trump, and secondly because "there was work." Considering that American-Hungarian relations in the world of politics are particularly bad today (and we are allies of each other), the purpose of the visit was also to restore this, he noted.
This will not work with the current American government, he stated, seeing the reason for this in the fact that there is a pro-war government in Washington, the Democrats are the president, and they are committed to the war. "We are a pro-peace government, so we don't grind in a mill," he added.
On the other hand, Donald Trump is the president of peace - emphasized Viktor Orbán, noting that in his case there is no talk of a bag cat, since he was already president, so he knows exactly what will happen. Donald Trump ended wars in his first four years, and he was the first president in a long time who did not start a war - Viktor Orbán praised the former American president.
He stated: Donald Trump clearly stated that his goal is to create peace in the Russian-Ukrainian war, and Hungary also wants nothing more than peace as soon as possible, a ceasefire and the end of the war.
I don't see another person as determined and strong as Donald Trump, said the Prime Minister.
Viktor Orbán also spoke about the fact that although Americans generally do not know European culture and history in detail, they do understand that Hungary is a neighboring country to Ukraine, and that if there is a war in the neighborhood, that is bad.
They also know that in addition to moral considerations and geopolitical views, we should be interested in peace based on our own national interests, and that is why they can count on us to create peace, he noted.
Donald Trump has detailed plans for how to end the war, and they coincide with Hungary's interests, Viktor Orbán said.
The prime minister also spoke about how, on his American trip, he not only visited Donald Trump, but also held a lecture at the conservative analysis center of the Heritage Foundation, which writes his professional program. Today, Hungary is seen there as a special place. They see that Europe is a big, liberal, progressive ocean, and there is an island in it, Hungary, which tries to live, think and behave differently, in their language, "does conservative politics".
Hungary has great authority in the United States today because it has done things that they also want, but it doesn't work.
Viktor Orbán mentioned public safety among the natural things, and added: Hungary is respected in the United States because "we are recognized by everyone as the safest country in Europe."
He noted that they also want to stop migration, but they don't know how. The current president doesn't want to, but even Donald Trump had a hard time when he wanted to. We have a fence that is protected by police and soldiers, they also want one in the United States, because illegal immigrants are coming in by the millions, he said.
It also earns respect in America that Hungary stands up for family values, while everyone is talking about "such LGBTQ nonsense" all over Western Europe.
We are in a better position in terms of recognition and authority than we used to think, said Viktor Orbán, who said that since George Bush Sr., he has met every American president personally, if not elsewhere, regularly at NATO summits.
The Republicans understand that they are now experiencing a difficult period for American-Hungarian relations, because the American government expects things from Hungary that "we do not want and cannot fulfill," he emphasized.
Among these, he mentioned that we should enter the war, say that migration is a good thing, it just needs to be managed well, and we should support LGBTQ rights, "and this whole confused, colorful system of forms of coexistence".
The current American administration has come to the conclusion that they cannot reach an agreement with the Hungarian government, so the only solution is to replace it, commented the Prime Minister.
Therefore, the current US administration openly gives money to the left-wing opposition, journalists, media and civil society organizations to achieve a change of government. Of course, this spoils relations, "we are allies, not servants".
He pointed out: the American democratic government, the leadership of the EU and the largest EU member states are hanging on a string, pro-war governments. Donald Trump and Hungary are pro-peace, this is the difference at the bottom of everything.
Donald Trump has a clear idea, which is hard to disagree with: he will not give a single penny to the Ukrainian-Russian war, therefore the war will end, the Prime Minister indicated.
Viktor Orbán also said: It is not easy for Hungary to raise the money that is being spent on security and armaments today, but it must be acknowledged that the period of re-arming has come in Europe, the Americans will not pay the security bills for us.
Every European country must do its part, financially as well, and must have its own army and equipment, and we must be able to defend our own country or contribute to common military capabilities in an alliance, he emphasized. He added: the money we spend on the army today would have a place elsewhere, but the Ukrainian-Russian war proved that "you can't be lazy now".
The Prime Minister said: it is a big help that Donald Trump's wife is of Slovenian origin, because her husband has more knowledge about this region compared to the general knowledge of presidents. He noted: the meeting was of a family nature, the father of the former president's wife was also there.
According to Viktor Orbán, what we see and reality are not different, the president lives as he is and his family as he is in reality. The special thing about Donald Trump is that he was already a legend before his presidency.
Regarding the American campaign, the Prime Minister classified the plans that they would not allow someone to run, rather in the toolbox of the dictatorship, which is not worthy of American democracy. In his experience, "you can only win if you suffer for it" and Donald Trump "suffers like a dog" for it because what he has to go through is unprecedented.
However, Viktor Orbán is sure that those who go through the process of being shut down, being tried in court, having their assets taken away, being excluded from running, but still fighting and starting, will win in the end, just like the heroes of Hungarian folk tales. .
The prime minister emphasized: the election of Donald Trump would also mean a lot from the point of view of the economy. There are nine billion euros of American investment in Hungary today, and the trade turnover between the two countries is roughly the same. We have a benefit of three billion euros. However, the fact that the current US administration repealed the legislation on double taxation and did not adopt a new one is a serious obstacle to strengthening relations.
Viktor Orbán called doubling the turnover of nine billion euros a realistic goal. It would mean a lot to the Hungarian economy if the United States, an ally and friend of ours, would consider Hungary a priority economic and investment destination, and the Hungarian people would also gain a lot from this.
If Joe Biden won, it would be bad, Viktor Orbán added.
The Prime Minister also touched on the fact that, although not with Donald Trump, Hungary's role as a bridge between East and West was a serious issue at the Washington lecture.
Currently, the investment value of Germans in Hungary is 25 billion euros, that of Americans is nine, that of China is also nine, and that of South Korea is six. Today, Chinese and American investments are in balance, but the Chinese are growing, while the Americans are stuck, so the United States, if they want to keep up with China, must increase their investments in Hungary, he pointed out.
Viktor Orbán sees an opportunity for Donald Trump to conclude a trade agreement with the Chinese after his election. And it would be good for Hungary if German, Chinese, South Korean and American capital could cooperate within the country, and with the increase in size, the welfare of Hungarians would also improve, he added.
MTI
Cover image: Prime Minister Viktor Orbán gives an interview about his American trip to the current channel M1 in the Karmelita monastery on March 10, 2024.
From left, presenter Tünde Volf-Nagy Source: MTI/Prime Minister's Press Office/Benko Vivien Cher
