Hungary’s Orbán Says Ukraine Not Sovereign Country
Key Facts
- Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said Ukraine is not an independent or sovereign country, downplaying reports that Hungarian drones entered Ukrainian airspace.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed drones from Hungary violated Ukrainian airspace, but Hungary’s foreign minister rejected the accusation.
- Ukraine presented evidence of the drone incursion, further escalating the diplomatic clash between Budapest and Kyiv.
- The dispute comes amid already tense relations, including Ukraine’s strike on the Druzhba pipeline that disrupted oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia.
- Meanwhile, Bulgaria backed an EU plan to end Russian gas exports by 2027, a move that would cut supplies critical for Hungary.
by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief reporting from Budapest
BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Hungary’s prime minister has defended the possibility that Hungarian drones violated Ukrainian airspace, saying he doesn’t consider Ukraine an independent, sovereign country.
Viktor Orbán’s remarks came as tensions between the two neighbors rapidly escalated.
On Friday, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, claimed that reconnaissance drones that violated Ukraine’s airspace could have flown from Hungary to check the industrial potential of western border areas in the Transcarpathian region.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó rejected the Ukrainian claims, but Orbán didn’t deny the incident.
ORBÁN DISMISSES DRONE ISSUE
“I believe my ministers, but let’s say it did actually fly a few metres there, so what? Ukraine is not an independent country. Ukraine is not a sovereign country,” Orbán said in an interview on a right-wing podcast popular with his supporters.
Even if a drone enters Ukraine from Hungary, Orbán said, Kyiv should deal with drones coming from the east, from Russia.
“Ukraine is not at war with Hungary; it is at war with Russia. It should be concerned with the drones on its eastern border, as there are NATO [military alliance] member states here. Ukraine’s hinterland is safe. Nobody will attack it from there. I don’t think the Poles, Slovaks, Hungarians or Bulgarians would want to attack them. This is a hoax. It has no significance,” Orbán stressed.
Earlier, the Hungarian and Ukrainian foreign ministers were in a war of words over the issue. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó denied that the drones were from Hungary and accused Ukraine’s leader of fostering anti-Hungarian sentiment.
UKRAINE SHOWS EVIDENCE
“Volodymyr Zelenskyy is becoming crazily anti-Hungarian, now he sees horrors,” Szijjártó said.
His Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, replied with a map showing the drones’ route, calling Hungarian officials blind.
“For the blind Hungarian officials. [This is the] Exact route of yesterday’s drone incursion from Hungary into Ukrainian airspace. Our Armed Forces have gathered all of the necessary evidence, and we are still waiting for Hungary to explain what this object did in our airspace,” Sybiha wrote on social media.
The latest standoff came while relations between Hungary and Ukraine were already at a historic low, following severalincidents. Ukraine recently bombed the Druzhba pipeline on Russian territory, effectively stopping oil deliveries to Hungary and Slovakia for days.
EU ENERGY BATTLE
In another setback for Orbán, Bulgaria announced Monday it is backing a European Union plan to end Russian natural gas exports to the bloc by late 2027. This move would effectively cut off pipeline supplies from Moscow to Hungary and Slovakia.
Hungary, seen by critics as pro-Russia, is also the primary opponent of Ukraine’s EU accession ambitions, threatening a veto on opening negotiating chapters.
Prime Minister Orbán said earlier that Ukraine’s joining the European Union would be an economic disaster for Hungary and the EU. Additionally, his government opposes military aid to Ukraine, saying Kyiv and Moscow should negotiate a peace settlement.
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