Yet again, Hungary has refused to join a show of support by European Union members for Ukraine, refusing to sign onto a statement after Thursday’s summit in Brussels reaffirming “continued and unwavering support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
Hungary’s Kremlin-friendly, nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán remains at odds with the other 26 EU members, who have been striving to circumvent the bloc’s veto provisions in their insistent efforts to ensure continuing EU assistance for Ukraine.
Repeatedly, Hungary has sought to block the passage of EU multibillion-euro aid packages and sanctions designed to back Ukraine. Despite Budapest’s stance, the rest of the bloc is increasingly determined to move ahead.
Just this week, Hungary’s European Affairs Minister Janos Boka declared that they would refuse to sign the joint statement. “The part on Ukraine in several points is against the strategic interests and the strategic vision of Hungary on how to create the new European security architecture,” he said on Monday.
Weeks previously, European Council President Antonio Costa described Hungary’s position as “isolated” and pointedly noted, “it’s one out of 27, and 26 are more than one.” The other 26 members of the EU continue looking for ways to support Kyiv.
On Tuesday, six EU members urged the European Commission to find ways to speed up talks about Ukraine’s prospective membership, something Orbán has vowed to block. Reportedly, he now plans a public opinion survey in Hungary on whether Ukraine should be allowed to join the EU.
Before this week’s summit, Orbán met with far-right EU politicians and was adamant about not providing funds to enable Ukraine to keep on fighting. “In our understanding, there is one simple mission to be done by the European Union: to support Donald Trump, President Donald Trump’s efforts to make peace,” he said.
