Economy 11 December 2023, 11:30am

Zelensky shares info on conversation with Hungary's Orbán

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I had a very "frank" and "straightforward" conversation with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán during the inauguration ceremony of the new President of Argentina, these are the two adjectives used by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his videos published on Telegram and X (formerly Twitter) to describe the talks. On Telegram he said that he still expects EU member states to show a positive approach at the EU summit on Thursday and Friday to starting accession talks with Ukraine. This is important because this would only be possible with unanimous approval, i.e. if Hungary changed its mind and did not veto. Zelensky also expects a positive decision on the €50 billion financial package for Ukraine following his recent talks with the President of the European Commission, which is possible even if the Hungarian veto on this issue holds, as it could be circumvented.

Orban Viktor Volodimir Zelenszkij talalkozo Argentina

Zelensky and Orbán had a brief, about 20-second, conversation at the inauguration ceremony of Javier Milei in Buenos Aires on Sunday.

️President Volodymyr briefly spoke with the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor , during the inauguration ceremony of the newly elected President of , as reported by European Pravda.The details of the conversation are not known. #Zelensky
— KyivPost (@KyivPost) December 10, 2023

A brief video on the conversation was posted on Orbán's Facebook page late on Sunda, but it's no longer available. These and the official photos of the Ukrainian President suggest that they had at least two separate conversations.

Then, on Sunday night and early Monday morning, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky communicated what had happened between the two. He posted two videos from the Argentine embassy building, one on Telegram and the other on X (formerly Twitter).

It was as frank as possible - and obviously, it was about our European affairs,

Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address posted on the Telegram channel early on Monday, Reuters reported.

The report also quotes Bertalan Havasi, Viktor Orbán's press chief, who confirmed the meeting by e-mail, but did not say whether the Hungarian PM still opposes Ukraine's accession to the European Union.

With regards to Ukraine's EU accession, Viktor Orbán signalled that the member states of the European Union were continuously discussing the issue,

Havasi said in the email.

Orbán has also threatened to block moves to give Kyiv 50 billion euros in budget support through 2027, though a senior official said on Friday the EU would find ways to support Ukraine financially even if Hungary vetoed the move.

Zelenskiy said earlier he had spoken by telephone with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to coordinate their positions.

We are counting on a positive decision regarding the allocation of 50 billion euros and the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU,

he said in a post on Telegram.

On Sunday, Zelensky also spoke by phone with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, referring to the latter conversation, he said in the video:

Europe must decisively defend its values and unity. I know that we can rely on the support of Madam President in this matter.

In the video posted on X, Zelensky listed the Member State leaders and organisations he met during the inauguration ceremony of the Argentine President, including Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

The subtitles say:

It was a highly straightforward conversation, focused on our European affairs.

He also indicated that he would be in the United States on Monday and Tuesday to meet U.S. President Joe Biden and several members of Congress.

In the context of Hungarian-Ukrainian relations, two important Ukrainian laws have recently been amended, which could provide a basis for putting aside the Hungarian veto on the start of accession negotiations.