The meeting between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin of Russia, something that was unthinkable a year ago, is becoming increasingly likely to become a reality. As we reported, Budapest, Hungary, has been floated as the possible venue for the monumental meeting—even Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó of Hungary has confirmed that Hungary is ready to take on the role of the host.
One person is certainly in favour of that proposition: Bryan Leib, Senior Fellow at the Budapest-based conservative think tank Center for Fundamental Rights and Managing Director of the Hollywood, Florida-based PR firm Henry Public Relations. In a post on the social media site X, he took the idea even a step further. He also suggested that trilateral talks between Presidents Zelenskyy, Putin, and US President Donald Trump, proposed after the one-on-one meeting of the Ukrainian and Russian delegations, should take place in Budapest.
‘I can think of no better place (other than the White House) for a tri-lateral summit between the United States/Russia/Ukraine than Budapest,’ he wrote in his post, which he shared along with an image of a nighttime aerial view of the Budapest Parliament Building.
The post has received 255 likes, 47 reposts, and 24 comments thus far.
He has also appeared on the American cable news channel NTD News, where he elaborated on why he thinks the Hungarian capital would be the best fit to host the meeting.
‘I am someone who is very involved in US-Hungary relations, I’ve been to Budapest many times. I, personally, just want to say: if President Trump is listening or watching, it would be an amazing idea for Budapest [to host]. I think it’s an ideal location for that trilateral summit.
Budapest and Hungary really stand at the crossroads of the East and the West. Under the leadership of their Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, they have really become a strong voice in Europe for sovereignty, protecting your borders, security in your country, and traditional values. So I think it would send a really powerful signal to all of Europe if President Trump decided, of course with President Putin and President Zelesnskyy, to have the summit in Budapest. That would be fun to see,’ Leib told NTD’s audience.
President Trump met with President Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, on 15 August, then met with President Zelenskyy at the White House in Washington, DC, on 18 August, as part of the ongoing peace negotiations in the Russo–Ukrainian war.
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