A European leader’s top aide suggested his country wouldn’t have resisted if Russia had invaded it
Side by side images of Fidesz political director Balázs Orbán in 2023, and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in 2024.
A top aide to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has drawn criticism for suggesting that his country would not have resisted a Russian invasion like Ukraine did, according to multiple reports.
Balázs Orbán, the prime minister’s highly influential political director, made the remarks on the podcast of a conservative Hungarian news magazine.
Balázs Orbán, who is also an MP, is not related to Viktor Orbán.
“We probably would not have done what President Zelenskyy did two and a half years ago, because it is irresponsible, because one can see that he took his country into a war of defense,” Balázs Orbán said, according to Hungarian outlet Telex.
“So many people have died, so much territory was lost,” he continued, adding: “It is their sovereign decision, they could choose to do it, but if they had asked us, we would not have recommended it.”
He said this was because Hungary had tried and failed to resist the Soviet Union in 1956.
That year, Hungary — then a satellite state to the bloc — demanded democratization and a move away from Soviet control. Its uprising was brutally repressed by Moscow’s forces, who killed at least 2,700 people, with more than 180,000 people fleeing the country.
“One has to treat the very precious Hungarian lives with great care,” he said, per Telex.
Balázs Orbán’s remarks have caused uproar among Hungarian opposition politicians, but he has continued to defend his position, saying that hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians have died “for nothing,” Politico reported.
He later said in a post on X that reporting on his remarks was “fake news,” adding that “we cannot equate 1956 with the current Russia-Ukraine war.”
Hungary’s position is “pro-peace,” he said.
Fake news @POLITICOEurope ‼️
——
Let me be clear: the heroes of 1956 are our national heroes, and their memory is sacred. Period. However, we cannot equate 1956 with the current Russia-Ukraine war. For the past two and a half years, since the outbreak of the war, we have faced… https://t.co/IJglg1hFrp
— Balázs Orbán (@BalazsOrban_HU) September 26, 2024
Viktor Orbán, the Hungarian leader, attempted to downplay his aide’s comments in an interview on Friday, Politico reported.
He said Orbán “confusingly phrased his words” but wouldn’t hesitate to defend his country, per the outlet.
Viktor Orbán is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in the European Union, a position that has put him strongly out of favor in the bloc.
He has opposed both sanctions on Russia and aid to Ukraine, and has accused the EU of prolonging the war by offering military assistance to Ukraine.
Orbán’s hard-right Fidesz government has admirers in the US.
Former President Donald Trump has also advocated for negotiations with Putin.
Earlier this week, Trump pointed to Russian and Soviet military history to make his argument for doing a deal. “That’s what they do, they fight,” he told supporters at a rally. “And it’s not pleasant.”
