PHOTOS: Hungary finally protects Russian rocket scientist

We wrote in June that Anatoly Lazarev (68), a Russian rocket scientist, fled to Hungary because, in Russia, he no longer felt safe. He claims he refused to pay for Putin’s party as a businessman. As a result, Russian authorities charged him with fraud, investigations started, and state authorities broke his career. Afterwards, he came to Hungary. However, Moscow demanded extradition, and Hungary’s asylum office did not grant him protection status. They said the Russians promised to respect human rights and would not conduct a “political persecution based on political, ethnic, religious, national or other grounds” if they get him back.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee decided to help him. After a process, lasting more than 4.5 years, the Budapest court decided in favour of Mr Lazarev. As a result, Hungary will grant him refugee status, the strongest protection a country can offer. It means that he and his family can remain in Hungary, will not be extradited to the Russian authorities and can continue his career in safety, hvg.hu wrote.

Századvég: Hungarians support ceasefire, peace talks

An overwhelming majority of Hungarians, 91 percent, support an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and peace talks, the Századvég Institute said on Friday. Some 7 percent said the war should continue until Russian President Vladimir Putin is defeated, the pollster said in a statement.

• Read also: Russian rocket scientist fled to Hungary – will he be extradited?

Fully 62 percent were of the view that neither parties had a chance of winning the war, Századvég said. Fully 70 percent of respondents said the sanctions imposed on Russia harmed the European Union and Hungary. The results are in line with the policies of the Hungarian government, which has been pursuing a pro-peace policy, urging a ceasefire rather than measures likely to escalate the conflict, Századvég said.

Századvég gauged public approach to the war and EU and US policies after EU and US politicians, including EU Vice-President Vera Jourova, MEP Guy Verhofstadt and David Pressman, the US Ambassador to Hungary, criticised Hungary’s policies with a view to putting pressure on the government to change its approach, Századvég said. Ukrainian deputy foreign minister Yevhen Perebyinis said Hungary was “blocking sanctions against Russia”.

Read alsoPM Orbán: I hate to imagine what would happen if Russia lost the war

Source: MTI, hvg.hu