The meeting between the two leaders was not included in the agenda and “unforeseen”, claims the Russian side. Viktor Orban met Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the summit dedicated to the tenth anniversary of the Silk Roads in Beijing. The Hungarian Prime Minister is thus the first Western leader to meet Vladimir Putin since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against him.
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From our correspondent in Moscow,
A Thai leader reportedly waiting in his car for the Russian president to finish his meeting with the Hungarian prime minister. A Viktor Orban crossing the wide green lawns of the residence allocated to Vladimir Putin to chat with him. Russian television, which widely broadcast this trip, spared no effort to show a head of state in demand.
Not a word on the Russian screens of the mandate of the International Criminal Court which has finally made Vladimir Putin a pariah in the West. We are talking about very vague “difficulties” here. Sitting in an armchair facing Viktor Orban, the Russian president appears very satisfied:
“ Due to current geopolitical conditions, the possibilities for maintaining contact and developing relationships are very limited. But it is satisfactory that (Russia) has maintained relations with many European countries, and Hungary is one of them. »
Among Europeans, only the Austrian chancellor has met Vladimir Putin since he sent his soldiers to Ukraine. Karl Nehammer then said, in April 2022, that he wanted “ confront Vladimir Putin with the realities of war “.
Criticized for his initiative, the chancellor then admitted at a press conference after his brief visit to Moscow: “If you ask me if I’m an optimist or a pessimist, then I’m pretty pessimistic. We should have no illusions, President Putin has massively entered into a logic of war and he is acting accordingly. »
If he mentioned a ceasefire in Ukraine on his Facebook page in these terms: “ It is crucial that the flow of refugees, sanctions and fighting in our neighboring country stop », the Hungarian Prime Minister rather praises a quality relationship to be preserved.
In any case, according to the words translated and broadcast on Russian television, Viktor Orban notably declared: “ Since 2009, we have met 13 times and have never found ourselves in such a difficult situation. Hungary never wanted to face Russia; on the contrary. »
According to the Hungarian news agency MTI, the two leaders discussed energy supplies.