EU Chief Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday criticized Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s diplomatic trip to Moscow aimed at discussing ways to end the war in Ukraine, calling it an “appeasement mission.”
Orban’s country currently holds the rotating EU presidency.
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“This so-called peace mission was nothing but an appeasement mission... Russia is banking on Europe and the West going soft, and some in Europe are playing along,” von der Leyen told the European Parliament.
Orban met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 5, just a few days before Russian missiles struck a children's hospital in Kyiv.
In response, von der Leyen ordered top EU officials to avoid meetings hosted by Hungary during its EU presidency, instructing them to send lower-ranking civil servants instead.
She described the strike as a deliberate message from the Kremlin, saying “That strike was not a mistake. It was a chilling message from the Kremlin to all of us.”
Orban’s visit to Moscow sparked outrage across the 27-nation European Union, with many leaders and officials stating it was not sanctioned by Brussels. The solo diplomatic initiative exacerbated tensions within the EU, where Hungary has already faced fund freezes due to concerns over democratic and rule-of-law principles.
During her address to the parliament, von der Leyen dismissed Orban’s stated aim of exploring paths to peace for Ukraine with Putin.
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“No one wants peace more than the people of Ukraine, a just and lasting peace for a free and independent country. And Europe will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes,” she said.
EU Chief also stressed the need for the EU to strengthen its defense capabilities alongside NATO.
“I do believe it is now time to build a veritable union of defense in the EU,” she said.
EU lawmakers earlier condemned Orban’s recent visit to Russia, stressing that he did not represent the European Union on the trip.
The visit was a “blatant violation of the EU’s treaties and common foreign policy,” lawmakers said in a resolution passed during the parliament’s first session since the June elections in the French city of Strasbourg.
Orban did “not represent the EU,” they highlighted in the non-binding resolution.
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