BEIJING: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on Monday, official media reported, in a trip the European leader has branded as a “Peace mission 3.0” following recent visits to Kyiv and Moscow.
The unannounced trip comes a day before NATO is due to hold a summit to mark its 75th anniversary, with setbacks in Kyiv set to dominate talks, and follows Orban’s surprise visits to Ukraine and Russia in the past week.
Orban, the friendliest European leader towards Russia, held meeting with President Vladimir Putin on Friday regarding the war in Ukraine during a trip criticized by both the EU and Kyiv, which said it threatened to undermine the alliance’s stance on the ongoing conflict.
Russian President Putin told Orban, that Ukraine must withdraw its forces from regions that Moscow has annexed if it wants peace in the region. Hungary took over the European Union’s rotating presidency at the start of July, and the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell stated Orban’s visit to Moscow was purely a bilateral matter and he “has not received any mandate from the EU Council to visit Russia”.
Close to both President Xi and President Putin, PM Orban has refused to send arms to Kyiv, unlike his fellow EU leaders. Russia and China’s strategic partnership has grown closer since the invasion of Kyiv.
China presents itself as a neutral party in the conflict and says it is not sending lethal help to either side, unlike the US and other Western countries. It has however offered a critical lifeline to Moscow’s isolated economy, with trade booming since the war began.
PM Orban was greeted at the airport by Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying, according to a photo the Hungarian Prime Minister posted on social media. Chinese leader President Xi visited Hungary in May, for the final leg of a European visit that also led him to Serbia and France. After a meeting with PM Orban, President Xi said China placed “great importance” on its ties with the EU.
PM Orban has been championing an “Eastern opening” foreign policy since he assumed power in 2010, seeking closer economic relations to Russia, China, and other Asian nations. Last October, the Hungarian PM was the sole EU leader to attend the summit for Xi’s flagship Belt and Road initiative in Beijing.
