Foreign minister Szijjártó: No goal can be achieved without Russia

Hungary continues to call for, meaningful peace negotiations between those who are fighting the war, Péter Szijjártó, the foreign minister, said on Sunday before departing for a major peace summit on Ukraine in Switzerland.

Szijjártó recalled that for two and a half years Hungary had been “living in the shadow of the war raging next door”, and for two and a half years Hungary had been saying “loud and clear” – arguing in favour of an immediate ceasefire and peace talks – that this war has no solution on the battlefield. He also underscored that Hungary is ready to mediate between the West and Russia – read our article about it HERE!

Szijjártó noted that the later the negotiations start, the later a ceasefire is reached, the more people will die and the greater the destruction will be.

He said Hungary had always highly appreciated Switzerland’s efforts for peace but added that a peace conference could only achieve its goal if both warring sides were at the table. “But this will not happen this weekend,” he said.

“What is going on next door is a war between Russia and Ukraine, not a war between Europe and Russia, not a war between the Western world and Russia, quite simply because Russia attacked Ukraine and not Europe or the Western world. That is why we are still urging real, meaningful peace negotiations between those who are fighting the war. The international community should achieve the goal that the warring sides finally conclude a ceasefire and sit down at the same table [for talks],” the foreign minister said in a post on Facebook.

Read also:

• Swiss peace summit: Hungary ready to mediate between the West and Russia
• Foreign minister Szijjártó: NATO members view Ukraine war differently from Hungary