Estonian President Alar Karis urged EU leaders to engage in dialogue with Viktor Orbán rather than merely ‘label him’, suggesting that Hungary’s concerns over Ukraine’s EU bid must be taken seriously. His remarks mark a rare call for compromise within the bloc, as Budapest remains the sole veto blocking Kyiv’s accession.
Lisbon’s famed Glória funicular derailed on Wednesday evening, killing 17 and injuring 21. Prime Minister Luís Montenegro called it ‘one of the biggest tragedies’ in recent history, declaring a day of mourning. Hungary’s Viktor Orbán joined world leaders in offering condolences to Portugal.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, fresh from nearly an hour-long private meeting with Vladimir Putin in Beijing, announced he will deliver a ‘very serious message’ to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday. Fico’s role echoes Viktor Orbán’s earlier peace missions, though the Slovak leader emerges at a moment when Putin insists no peace is possible without addressing NATO expansion.
Western media suggest Viktor Orbán could ‘climb down’ from Hungary’s veto on Ukraine’s EU bid after alleged pressure from Donald Trump. Yet officials stress the call itself is disputed—and insist accession would drag an open war into the EU, a step Hungary refuses to take.
‘According to the Deputy Foreign Minister, the conflict is a religious war against radical Islamist ideology, not a territorial one. Western leaders like Macron, she said, fail to grasp this. In her view, Hamas fights against universal Western values, leaving Israel with no choice but to defend itself.’
Hungary is not in a dead end, but outdated foreign policy thinking has reached one, Balázs Orbán, the prime minister’s political advisor, argued. He rejected claims that opposing Brussels has left Hungary isolated within the EU.
A Russian missile strike on Mukachevo (Munkács) on 21 August injured 23 and marked the first hit on Transcarpathia in the war’s three years. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán pledged medical support from Hungarian hospitals and stressed that peace efforts must continue to protect ethnic Hungarians.
After the European Council meeting on the Alaska summit, Viktor Orbán argued that Brussels’ Ukraine strategy had collapsed—its isolation policy, battlefield expectations, and membership promises as security guarantee all failed. With Trump’s team eyeing Budapest as the venue for a potential Putin–Zelenskyy summit, Hungary’s influence in Europe could be significantly bolstered.
‘Hungary chose sovereignty, and did so with courage. It’s sent a powerful message: The definition of who we are is ours to give. And in Europe, we need more Orbáns and fewer Macrons,’ Greek MEP Afroditi Latinopoulou told the audience at CPAC Hungary 2025 back in May. A clip of her speech was shared on X earlier this week and generated quite a bit of attention again.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said Hungary could cause Ukraine’s collapse within a day by cutting energy supplies but has no intention of doing so. He declared ‘Ukraine has lost the war, Russia has won,’ adding that only Western aid is delaying the inevitable.