Hungary’s Orbán in Moscow for talks with Vladimir Putin

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Kremlin with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. Pic/AFP

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has arrived in Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Orban's press chief said Friday, a rare visit to Russia by a European leader since it invaded Ukraine more than two years ago. Orban's visit comes only days after he made a similar unannounced trip to Ukraine, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and proposed that Ukraine consider agreeing to an immediate cease-fire with Russia.

The Hungarian PM, widely seen as having the warmest relations with Vladimir Putin among all European Union leaders, has routinely blocked, delayed or watered down EU efforts to assist Ukraine and impose sanctions on Moscow. He has long argued for a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine but without outlining what that might mean for the country's territorial integrity or future security. That posture has frustrated Hungary's EU and NATO allies, which have considered Russia's invasion as a threat to the security of countries in Eastern Europe.

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