Hungarian foreign minister met again with Russian FM Lavrov to discuss cooperation

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó met with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in New York on Wednesday, his ministry said in a statement.

Maintaining ties with Russia on the basis of mutual respect, and advancing cooperation in areas that are not affected by sanctions is in Hungary’s interest, Szijjártó said after the meeting.

He added that the Russian foreign minister always strived to accommodate the requests of the Hungarian government and was positive and open to resolving important matters affecting the sides.

Szijjártó said another “milestone” had been reached in the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant with the start of full excavation. The first concrete at the site will be poured by year-end, which is necessary for the project’s “under construction” designation according to National Atomic Energy Agency standards, he added.

Hungary is counting on cooperation with Russia to extend the lifespan of the existing four blocks at Paks, he said.

Hungarian FM acknowledged Russia’s flexibility

Szijjártó acknowledged Russia’s flexibility in the matter of ensuring Hungary’s crude supply after measures by Ukraine threatened transit deliveries through the Druzhba pipeline to Hungary and Slovakia.

Speaking about a visit by the Ukrainian foreign minister to Budapest in the coming week, Szijjártó said minority rights would be on the agenda, pointing to the deprivation of some rights of the Hungarian minority living there. He added that Hungary expected those rights to be restored.

He said the talks would also touch on economic cooperation, including cooperation on transportation and infrastructure developments.

Szijjártó reiterated Hungary’s pro-peace position and hope for a ceasefire, peace talks and the end of the war as soon as possible.

Szijjártó: ‘Fastest way to peace’ the real issue

The real issue regarding the war in Ukraine is to find the fastest way to peace, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, told the 79th UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday local time. “Unfortunately, I have to start with saying that we live in an age of dangers,” Szijjártó said.

After the fall of communism and Hungary’s Euro-Atlantic integration, “we would not have thought that we would be facing again the phantom of cold war,” he said.

As a neighbour of Ukraine, Hungary “has been living in the shadow of war” and facing its consequences by accepting 1.3 million refugees from the country, Szijjártósaid. “We have been paying the price of a war which is not our war, and for the outbreak of which we do not bear any kind of responsibility.”

“I think that after almost a thousand days, the real question is not what we think of the war, the real question is how peace could be made. Or even more precisely … we have to ask which is the fastest way to peace. Because we have to pick that one,” Szijjártó said, adding that Hungary wanted no more destruction.

The success of the European Union and the international community’s response to the war must also be weighed carefully, he said. “And if we are honest with ourselves, we have to say that practically nothing has worked out … [that] was based on an assumption that there might be a solution on the battlefield.”

Weapons deliveries made no sense

The international community must also ask whether weapons deliveries “made any sense”,  Szijjártó said. “And obviously, they have made no sense … because weapon deliveries have not changed the situation on the battlefield and they have not brought us closer to peace either.” Weapon deliveries had only increased the number of weapons on either side and prolonged the war, he said.

He also called on those deciding on whether weapons from the West would be allowed to be used in “strategic depth in Russia” to make responsible decisions and to consider the danger of escalation such a step would bring.

Szijjártó said Hungary was deeply concerned over the “open and shameless reference of the possible use of nuclear weapons”.

Seeking a solution at the negotiating table would save many lives, Szijjártó said. “Therefore Hungary argues in favour of an immediate ceasefire and the start of peace talks. This would be the fastest way to peace.”

The minister said the “international liberal mainstream” had turned “peace into a curse word”. Those arguing in favour of peace “will be immediately attacked and stigmatised”, he said.

He called on the UN to play a bigger role in the diplomatic efforts to end the war, as it provides a legitimate forum for warring parties to negotiate.

Szijjártó said Hungary considered it “nonsense and unacceptable” that representatives of world powers were not talking to each other, as that posed national security threats as well as the danger that the world would be divided into blocs again.

East-West cooperation is important

The world could benefit greatly from a “civilised East to West cooperation”, he said, adding that Hungary’s foreign policy was pragmatic and patriotic.

Global politics needed a fundamental change and must return to the principle of mutual respect by once again using dialogue and diplomacy as its most important tools, he said.

The fact that the supporters of peace were in the majority in the UN gave cause for hope, and Hungary was proud to be a member of “this global majority for peace”, he said. “And we are ready to support all global initiatives which are aiming at reaching peace, and we are ready to discuss all peace plans.”

At the same time, Szijjártó said it was “unacceptable that some countries would like to give exclusivity to one or another peace plan… We absolutely want all peace plans to be discussed,” he said, commending China and Brazil for drafting one and expressing hope that that peace plan would also be on the agenda.

He said economic sanctions were useless and hurt certain European countries more than they did Russia.

Brussels committed a huge mistake

Regarding illegal migration, Szijjártó said Brussels had committed a “huge mistake” when trying to manage rather than stop migration. Hungary stood by its right to determine whom to allow into the country, he said. International law said all those forced to flee their homes had the right to temporary asylum in the first safe country, “but not on the second, the third or the fourth one”. “Hungary will continue to stop the flow of illegal migration on its border, through which basically we save Europe from further huge security-related challenges”, he said. “In the meantime, it is insane” that Hungary had to pay hundreds of millions of euros in fines “because of complying with international law”, Szijjártó said.

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