During his visit to Kyiv on Tuesday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to consider a time-bound ceasefire; the Hungarian Prime Minister also announced that Hungary would conclude a comprehensive cooperation agreement with Ukraine in order to settle bilateral relations.

Viktor Orbán, the prime minister of Hungary, who holds the consecutive presidency of the Council of the European Union, arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday morning, where he thanked the Ukrainian president for the invitation at a joint press conference following his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyi, indicating that they had agreed on the meeting in Brussels last Thursday.

The Hungarian Prime Minister emphasized:

after taking over the EU presidency, his first trip led here, because the issue of peace is important not only in Ukraine, but in the whole of Europe.

He added: the war that the Ukrainians are now suffering deeply affects European security.

Viktor Orbán highly appreciated the initiatives taken by the President of Ukraine for the sake of peace, but at the same time indicated that he shared his opinion with Volodymyr Zelenskyi that these initiatives take a long time.

"The rules of international diplomacy are slow and complicated. I asked the president to consider whether it would be possible to reverse the order and speed up the peace negotiations with a quick ceasefire. A ceasefire bound by a deadline, which gives an opportunity to speed up the peace negotiations: I assessed the possibilities of this," he said.

He added that he had clarified this with the Ukrainian president and was grateful for the honest discussion and answers. He also indicated that he would prepare a report on the negotiation for the Council of the European Union, i.e. the EU prime ministers, on the basis of which the necessary European decisions could be made.

The Hungarian Prime Minister wished Ukraine a lot of success and promised that under the Hungarian EU presidency, they are at Ukraine's disposal in whatever they can and will help.

Speaking about the relationship between Hungary and Ukraine, Viktor Orbán emphasized that he came to Kyiv with the intention of making progress in bilateral relations. The Hungarian Prime Minister assessed the negotiations on the bilateral issues as constructive, adding that it was time for the meeting to take place, because there are many issues that need to be settled and that have been discussed and debated a lot in recent years.

    "We're trying to put past controversies behind us and focus on the period ahead"

he emphasized.

Viktor Orbán stated: he would like the relations between the two countries to be much better, which is why Hungary wants to conclude a comprehensive cooperation agreement with Ukraine, such as it has already concluded with other neighboring countries.

He indicated: Hungary, according to its strength, is happy to participate in the modernization of the Ukrainian economy, and wants an orderly framework for this.

Regarding the native Hungarian minority living in Ukraine, the Hungarian Prime Minister said: he sees a chance for progress to be made.

Regarding the Ukrainians living in Hungary, he announced: he welcomed Volodymyr Zelenskyi's initiative to establish a Ukrainian school in Hungary. He said: the Hungarian state will undertake the financing of this, and they will operate as many schools as necessary. If one, then one, if ten, then ten, he added.

Viktor Orbán reminded: Ukrainians have lived in Hungary before, there is also a Ukrainian self-government, but due to the high number of refugees, there are now many more people than before. These families need to be taken care of, they need work, a living, and security, and the children need suitable schools and good teachers, added the prime minister, who called it important that the Ukrainians staying here feel at home in Hungary.

    "Everything we talked about today serves as the basis for a future bilateral document between our states that will govern all segments of our relationship and will be mutually beneficial for both countries."

- said the Ukrainian president at the joint press conference with the Hungarian prime minister.

MTI / civilek.info

Cover photo: In the photo published by the Prime Minister's Press Office, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (b) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shake hands at the press conference held after their meeting in Kyiv on July 2, 2024.
MTI/Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltán Fischer