Paris warns Orbán ahead of EU summit: 'We are sending a clear message to Hungary'

Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said it would be "devastating" for his country and the EU if the summit to be held this Thursday and Friday did not the go-ahead for membership talks and more financial and military aid for Kyiv to defend itself against Russia's invasion, Reuters reported.

I cannot imagine, I don't even want to talk about the devastating consequences that will occur shall the (European) Council fail to make this decision,

he said, calling it "the mother of all decisions".

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who boasts about his ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, has threatened to veto the aid and enlargement talks. Other EU states, including richest member Germany, have said they back starting negotiations with Kyiv on the long process of joining the bloc, but Budapest dug in its heels.

"A majority of European politicians want to make such important decisions which are entirely unprepared and lack strategic agreement on the future of Europe," Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó wrote on Facebook before a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels that will help prepare the summit.

We will not give in to any pressure [...] irrespective of where that is coming from, from whom, and what kind of blackmail it is or promise.

The news agency pointed out that this is not the first time Hungary clashes with its EU partners. It watered down sanctions against Russia and last December vetoed a deal to grant Ukraine EUR 18 billion in 2023. It added that Budapest eventually allowed that assistance through after haggling for days over EU aid to Hungary, which had been blocked over concerns of democratic backsliding under Orbán.

I want to believe that the Europeans will be united [...] and we will today send clear messages to our Hungarian counterpart so it can be so,

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said.

Paris has been actively trying to convince the Orbán government to back down from its veto, and last Thursday Emmanuel Macron invited the Hungarian PM to a meeting. However, it has not been revealed what was finally agreed with the French President, and the parties did not hold a press conference after the meeting. Only before the working dinner did the Hungarian prime minister give an interview in which he sharply criticised Volodymyr Zelensky's Ukraine.

Hungary is a neighbour of Ukraine … we know exactly what is happening. Ukraine is known to be one of the most corrupt countries in the world. It’s a joke!,

Orbán told French news outlet Le Point in an interview published Friday. “We cannot take the decision to start a process of accession negotiations,” he added.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis described it as "a clash of ideologies, between those who want Europe to be strong and those who don't want the EU at all."

As Ukraine seeks new financial support from Europe, doubts are also growing about future U.S. aid to Kyiv as Zelensky prepares for talks in Washington. The Ukrainian leader says the U.S. may not have enough money to help Kyiv.

Any such decision - including a possible new package of sanctions against Russia, which would be the 12th package of restrictions since Moscow's full-scale invasion of the EU in February 2022 - would need the unanimous approval of all 27 EU member states. So a Hungarian veto could completely paralyse decision-making.

The European Commission is expected this week to unblock Budapest's access to €10 billion in what many had previously thought would loosen Hungary's grip over the Ukraine issue(s). The EC has categorically denied on several occasions that the release of some of the cohesion funds was due to a political deal, and the Hungarian government has also said the two cases are unrelated.

Diplomats said related attempts by Georgia and Bosnia to advance their hopes of joining the EU - backed by Orbán - would fall through if Hungary vetoed talks with Ukraine, but some also said a compromise was still possible.

Those expecting Orbán to budge described a possible compromise throwing the start on negotiations with Ukraine to March once final conditions are met. Others say it is possible Orbán may not be persuaded, Reuters said.

The latter is also becoming increasingly likely because Kyiv has previously amended the law in two cases criticised by the Hungarian government: last week, Zelensky's administration extended the language rights of minorities, including the Transcarpathian Hungarians, and adopted an anti-corruption package.

Cover photo: EU