Hungarian Conservative

‘Hungary has the ability to initiate some proposals to its neighbours regarding what steps to take to reduce the harmful effects of the war. The region needs to agree on what the long-term interests of its countries in the region are in the shadow of the war in Ukraine,’ China’s foremost political scientist holds.

Six direct flights will connect Hungary and China starting this summer, following Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó’s announcement in Beijing on Tuesday of a new service from Budapest to Xi’an. Direct connectivity plays a vital role in Sino–Hungarian economic and trade relations.

The Foreign Minister of Hungary stressed the importance of connectivity between the ‘interdependent’ Eastern and Western economies, and cautioned against dividing the world into political blocs again. On the same day, he also gave an update on the 15 Hungarian citizens still in Gaza.

US Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman was quick to condemn PM Viktor Orbán’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing on the social media platform X., suggesting the Hungarian prime minister was ‘pleading for business deals’. In response, Balázs Orbán pointed out that the US has in fact doubled its import of enriched uranium from Russia since the start of the war.

Hungarian-Chinese relations are largely about a medium-sized nation’s struggle to diversify and reduce the risk of having all of its eggs in the German manufacturers’ basket.

Viktor Orbán and Vladimir Putin last met in person on 1 February 2022 in Moscow, before the outbreak of the war on Ukraine. This time the two leaders discussed energy matters and bilateral cooperation. During their meeting, the Hungarian PM also emphasized the need to put an end to the fighting and achieve peace.

Viktor Orbán stated in Beijing that during President Xi Jinping’s tenure, Chinese–Hungarian relations have reached ‘unprecedented heights,’ which is extremely beneficial for Hungary. Orbán expressed gratitude to his host for the constant and unwavering support that Xi Jinping has provided for the development of bilateral relations.

The prime minister emphasized that China is Hungary’s ninth most significant trading partner, and in 2023, China became Hungary’s largest foreign direct investor once again. Companies with Chinese ownership provide employment to nearly 20,000 people in Hungary.

‘What sacrifices would the Australian nation be prepared to make now? I suspect that we will have to make some, more than we have recently had to—sacrifices in treasure, at least, if we are to avoid having to make them in blood. Because dictatorships are on the march, not just here in Europe and in the Middle East, but in East Asia too, and the only way to see off aggressive bullies is to meet them with an equal measure of strength and determination.’

‘Could Biden’s token [of shaking hands only with Orbán when arriving for the NATO group photo in Vilnius], as some experts suspect, have been an invitation to the Hungarian government to hop on board the US geopolitical bandwagon and forget the Chinese and Russian ones?’

Beijing does not seem to be deterred from aiding Moscow with military supplies despite yet another warning by the Biden administration. China was also unwilling to condemn Russia’s aggression at the G20 summit in India.