Péter Magyar, the new Hungarian prime minister will meet Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the coming days, he said in Berlin.
Friedrich Merz, the German Chancellor on Tuesday received Magyar for his inaugural official visit to, welcoming what he called a “fresh start in our relations” with Budapest.
Magyar, who in April defeated long-serving Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, has cast his premiership as a bid to bring Hungary back into the European mainstream after years of growing isolation under his predecessor.
The mood across European capitals has been one of relief since Orbán, widely regarded as a close Kremlin ally, was voted out of office, and the change in Budapest has also cleared the way for unblocking €90 billion in aid for Ukraine.
Yet significant differences over Ukraine remain.
Magyar has so far declined to authorise weapons deliveries to Ukraine, and has also pumped the brakes on EU accession talks with Kyiv.
He pointed on Tuesday to “technical negotiations” with Ukraine that he said were due to conclude within the week, adding that a meeting with Zelenskyy was expected in the coming days.
Kyiv, he said, must guarantee “fundamental human rights” for Hungary’s ethnic minority in Ukraine.
On the question of arms supplies, no common ground emerged.
Merz declared that Germany would “not waver in its commitment to Ukraine” and said Berlin would raise the issue of weapons deliveries with Budapest, to which Magyar replied bluntly that Hungary would send “neither weapons nor soldiers to Ukraine”.
The Berlin visit follows a deal with Brussels to unlock €16.4 billion in frozen EU funds, with Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president signalling that the money would be released subject to Magyar delivering on his reform commitments.
Merz left open on Tuesday whether Berlin would host a summit of the so-called E5, of Germany, Italy, Poland and Britain, ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara. “No E5 meeting is currently scheduled,” said a spokesman.
According to Bloomberg, Merz plans to host the leaders of France, the UK, Italy and Poland in Berlin later this month, to discuss a strategy for the meeting with Donald Trump in July. Mark Rutte, the NATO secretary-general, is also expected to be invited.
(bw)
Source:
www.euractiv.com
