Putin and Orbán in secretive phone call: here’s how the Russian President would arrive in Budapest

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation on Friday to discuss preparations for an upcoming peace summit planned to take place in Budapest. The dialogue was confirmed both by Orbán’s social media post and by Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for the Kremlin.

Putin’s arrival in Budapest will be challenging

Orbán announced the call via his official Facebook page, stating that the two leaders had completed their consultation and that preparations for the event were “in full swing”. The Kremlin’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, echoed this account to journalists in Moscow.

Peskov explained that Budapest had been chosen as the venue due to Hungary’s independent stance on the international stage. He also acknowledged the complex logistical challenges surrounding President Putin’s potential arrival in Hungary. Almost all neighbouring countries are members of NATO, the European Union, or the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader. Furthermore, a European Union flight ban on Russian aircraft remains in effect.

Putin and Trump to meet in Budapest in two weeks

The Kremlin has promised to provide further information on the call and the summit preparations in the near future. During his briefing, Peskov also noted that a meeting between President Putin and President Donald Trump of the United States could take place within the next two weeks.

• Sooner than expected: Here’s when Trump and Putin will meet in Budapest for potential peace talks

Zelensky surprised

Meanwhile, in Washington, reports suggest that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was taken by surprise by the news that Budapest would host the Trump–Putin summit aimed at discussing a potential end to the war in Ukraine, Telex wrote.

According to remarks by Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s chief of staff, to Axios, the Ukrainian delegation had just arrived in the U.S. capital when the information emerged. Yermak said the Ukrainian president was in Washington at Trump’s invitation and hoped that the meeting would lead to “clear decisions” from the United States on military aid and strategic support.

He added that Zelensky continues to express readiness to meet President Putin “in any format and in any country except Russia or Belarus,” stressing that some issues related to the front-line situation and future peace steps require in-person talks rather than secure phone discussions.

How would Putin arrive in Budapest?

According to Russian security expert Aleksander Kots, Putin’s safest flight path to Budapest would involve

flying from Moscow over the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and then Serbia into Hungary, Portfolio shared.

Given that Serbia does not directly border Turkey, transit through Bosnia-Herzegovina (not a NATO member) is speculated. This route avoids crossing NATO and EU members with direct ICC membership that pose legal risks due to the International Criminal Court’s outstanding arrest warrant against Putin for war crimes in Ukraine. Kots warns of potential risks from “lost drones” targeting Putin’s plane during transit.

No EU-wide travel ban against Putin

An EU Commission spokesperson clarified that while Putin’s assets are frozen, no EU-wide travel ban exists against him. It remains up to individual EU states to control their airspace entries, and no official objections have been raised within the EU about Putin’s passage or planned Budapest visit.

Hungary, which still legally remains an ICC state until mid-2026 despite announcing withdrawal in April 2025, is therefore formally required to enforce the ICC arrest warrant. However, Hungarian government actions—such as prior receptions of figures with ICC warrants—suggest it is unlikely they would detain Putin during his visit, with Foreign Minister Szijjártó affirming Hungary’s sovereign right to admit him.