Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, has approved the release of two Hungarian prisoners of war from Transcarpathia following talks in Moscow on Wednesday with Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Forcibly conscripted Hungarians from Transcarpathia
Mr Szijjártó raised the issue and requested the freeing of Hungarian citizens held captive by Russian forces. According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Vladimir Putin said that during their telephone conversation the previous day, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán had raised this issue, as well, and requested the release of Hungarian citizens held captive by Russian forces.
“These are citizens who hold both Ukrainian and Hungarian passports. They were forcibly conscripted and sent to the front, and we have decided to allow two of them to return with them on the aircraft they arrived in and on which they will fly home,” he announced.
FM Szijjártó, who also held discussions to secure Hungary’s energy security, highlighted that numerous ethnic Hungarians from Transcarpathia have been compulsorily drafted in Ukraine. Many have been killed, others have gone missing, and some remain in Russian captivity.
Putin’s promise concerning energy deliveries
Hungary has received guarantees that Russia will deliver the natural gas and crude oil required for the nation’s supply at unaltered prices, notwithstanding the ongoing international energy crisis, Péter Szijjártó, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, confirmed in Moscow on Wednesday.
“We also agreed that, should the delivery routes become untenable for various reasons, we would always seek alternative solutions. For instance, if the pipeline oil shipments continue to encounter difficulties, we would consider maritime transport options,” he confirmed. Szijjártó said that without Russian oil and gas deliveries, energy prices would skyrocket.
Peskov: Hungary blackmailed by the Kyiv government
The Kremlin on Wednesday said Russian President Vladimir Putin will discuss the situation surrounding the Druzhba oil pipeline with Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó in Moscow, the Turkish Anadolu News Agency wrote. In remarks to journalists during a press briefing, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin will receive Szijjártó, who arrived in Moscow on a working visit, later Wednesday.
“You know that there are buyers of our oil, like Hungary and Slovakia, who are currently facing blackmail from the Kyiv government. This blackmail is related to the deliberate blocking of supplies through the Druzhba pipeline,” Peskov said.
Orbán and Putin talked via phone
The remarks come a day after Putin held a phone call with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Oil shipments through the Druzhba pipeline were disrupted after a 27 January incident blamed on Russia by Kyiv, while Budapest and Bratislava accused Ukraine of intentionally blocking the pipeline’s restart to gain political leverage. After shipments via the pipeline were halted, Hungary and Slovakia decided to suspend diesel fuel supplies to Ukraine in response.
If you missed our previous articles concerning the ongoing war in Ukraine:
- Hungarian FM Szijjártó flew unexpectedly to Moscow for the Hungarian POWs
- Zelensky: Orbán could lose the April elections, after which full relations could be restored – here is Orbán’s harsh reply
They could have been released in a prisoner swap with Ukraine but Putin is helping Szijjarto put on a show in the run-up to the election. The Hungarian media will post videos on their arrival to Hungary to make a theatre piece for Fidesz.
You forget, that Ukraine captures so few prisoners, that Russia consistently swapped 5-10 times the prisoners in the exchanges, because Ukraine simply did not have more.
But you should understand, how much easier it is for Russia to release kidnapped Hungarians:
Hungarians are in fact talking to the Russians. Unlike Ukraine. And it is very hard to negotiate, when the other side isn’t talking to you. Now obviously, some talks are done about swaps, but Russian-Hungarian, or Russian-USA talks are in an another dimension compared to Ukraine.
And this didn’t have to be this way. French-German talks were constant during the Franco-German war when Germany unified for example.
Although “forcibly conscripted” is a technically accurate word, I would’ve used the word “kidnapped” instead. That is more accurate to describe Ukraine’s barbarism.
And even if I won’t vote for this government, I acknowledge, that saving lives is always a good and worthy cause. Even if you had to talk to the devil, which I don’t think Putin is the devil btw, to do it.
“Even if you had to talk to the devil, which I don’t think Putin is the devil btw, to do it”
I consider both Putin and you to be devils, because anyone who makes a pact with the devil (and Putin is a devil) and lies constantly, Mr. Engineer, is also one.
“And even if I won’t vote for this government, I acknowledge, that saving lives is always a good and worthy cause.”
Yeah, right, because you’re Russian. It would be ridiculous if you were allowed to vote in Hungary.
“You forget, that Ukraine captures so few prisoners, that Russia consistently swapped 5-10 times the prisoners in the exchanges, because Ukraine simply did not have more.”
Another one of your tall tales!
“Hungarians are in fact talking to the Russians. Unlike Ukraine. And it is very hard to negotiate, when the other side isn’t talking to you.”
Sure, when the Russians, the US, and Ukraine negotiate, they all just stare at each other in silence. You should get your sanity checked!
“And this didn’t have to be this way. French-German talks were constant during the Franco-German war when Germany unified for example.”
When was that supposed to have happened? Please provide specifics in writing. I’m waiting for your explanation and am curious about your “comprehensive” knowledge of history. I’d like to discuss it with you here, including sources.
To my knowledge, there was only one war in which the two of them were solely involved, and that was in 1870/71. It came about because Bismarck misrepresented (one could even say distorted) a letter from the French in such a way that the French lost face in public and declared war on Germany.
The result of all was German unification as a kind of federal state under the leadership of the Prussian king, who was crowned German Emperor in Versailles.
This newly founded German state, which legally continues to this day, is unlike the previous German confederation, initially under Austrian leadership until 1866 and then under Prussian leadership, after Austria was forced out of Germany by Prussia as a rival—namely, by Austria’s defeat in the war against Prussia in 1866 at the Battle of Königgrätz. As a consequence, Austria turned its attention eastward.
No negotiations took place during the war itself, not even regarding a prisoner exchange. Furthermore, Germany was able to defeat France relatively quickly (September 1870 to May 1871), making negotiations entirely unnecessary. The Russian war in Ukraine, which progressed at a snail’s pace, is not comparable. Yes, there were also negotiations, namely at the end, after France capitulated.
No talks were held in between because both sides were filled with hatred for the other, just as Putin is today with Ukraine, which dares to show that Russia is nothing more than a paper tiger that has once again bitten off more than it can chew.
You’d be better off telling your lies to Putin; he’ll eagerly accept them because he spreads the same conspiracy theories.
Isn’t it nice to be you?
Being so bitter, and overflowing with hatered.
I do not believe you to be evil, or the devil. Just dumb.
“Hungarians are in fact talking to the Russians. Unlike Ukraine. And it is very hard to negotiate, when the other side isn’t talking to you.”
Perhaps Putin would like to hear this. You could offer him an hourly fairy tale every day; he’ll certainly sleep better afterward, and the laundry won’t have to keep wondering about the brown stains on his underwear.
Kiev is waiting for good news on prisoner exchange , said Zelensky. In addition, he thanked representatives of the intelligence service, the Office of the President and all the services involved for taking steps for further prisoner exchanges.
“We are working to bring all our people home from Russian captivity. We hope for good news,” the president stressed.
He also noted that today he had a conversation with the secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov regarding his communication with representatives of the United States. According to the president, the dialog with the United States continues on a daily basis.
“Right now, because of the situation around Iran, there are not yet the necessary signals for a trilateral meeting. But as soon as the security situation and the general political context allow to continue exactly that, trilateral, diplomatic work, it will be done. Ukraine is ready for this,” Zelensky said in a statement
Ukraine walked away from the Istanbul process, and it is in Ukraine’ constitution to make peace talk illegsl until Putin abdicates (so Russia surrenders).
It’s Ukrain who doesn’t talk.
Putin has signed a decree setting the full-time strength of the Russian Armed Forces (AF) at 2,391,770, of which 1,502,604 are military personnel, according to the presidential decree.
The text of the decree says that the old decree on the size of the Russian Armed Forces from September 2024 is recognized as null and void. The previous decree set the number of troops to 2,389,130. The new decree increases the number of staff by about 2,000 people.
Of course, the good man just wants to live in peace and hold talks about peace with everyone. I’m just wanting to say, I’m not putting my pants on with pliers because then I would certainly believe the “Russian angel of peace”.
I don’t understand it, Russia and its ally are supposedly loved by everyone (irony 🙂 ).
Dramatic video footage from Kuwait shows an American fighter pilot being surrounded and threatened with a metal pipe by angry residents after an emergency landing. According to the Independent, the locals apparently mistook him for an Iranian soldier.
The pilot had to eject after three American F-15 fighter jets were accidentally shot down by Kuwaiti air defense systems. All six crew members escaped from their aircraft in time and were rescued unharmed.
The circulating video shows the pilot landing near a highway as plumes of black smoke rise in the distance. Surrounded by agitated civilians, one of whom is brandishing a metal pipe, he initially shouts, “Back up. Stop.” The situation only calms down when he loudly declares, “I’m American.”
The circulating video shows the pilot landing near a highway as plumes of black smoke rise in the distance. Surrounded by agitated civilians, one of whom is brandishing a metal pipe, he initially shouts, “Back up. Stop.” The situation only calms down when he loudly declares, “I’m American.”
It’s completely pointless to point out the stupid propaganda being posted here every single day. Therefore, I’m saying goodbye to Dailynews, wishing the online newspaper all the best, and telling Larry and the other honest people who can empathize with the vulnerable: don’t let yourselves be defeated. My time is too precious to waste dealing with demonstrably liars and idiots.
If you call it propaganda, and I criticise it for being too pro-West, that means they are actually balanced.
Just sayin’.