Will Hungary send soldiers to fight in Ukraine?

Asked about the Russia-Ukraine conflict and Hungary’s possible participation, Gergely Gulyás, the prime minister’s chief of staff, said the incumbent government would “not send Hungarian soldiers to fight in Ukraine”. He added that the interior and defence ministries were in the process of making a detailed plan in preparation for a possible wave of refugees.

A large part of them could be heading for Poland, while both ethnic Hungarians and Ukrainians in Transcarpathia could choose to come to Hungary, he said, adding that Hungary could accommodate “tens of thousands if necessary”. He noted that under Hungary’s refugee rules “the first safe country” is supposed to provide shelter, and said “in Ukraine’s case this is Hungary”.

Replying to a question concerning a possible visit to Hungary by former US president Donald Trump before April 3, Gulyás said he had no information of that kind, adding that “the government is not organising such a visit”.

• Read also: What would the Hungarian armed forces do if Russia attacked Ukraine?

On another subject, Gulyás said the European Commission had rejected Hungary’s reconstruction plan “because of the child protection law”, suggesting that the legislation curbed the rule of law. “The Hungarian government is concerned that the rule of law should be used as punishment for Hungary” over the contested law, he said. “The rule of law is a tool for the Left to sanction different political positions,” he said. Gulyás noted that the EU Court of Justice’s sentence was not appealable, but added that “if the ruling is applied by the European Commission in line with the European Council’s and the court’s restrictive conclusions Hungary has nothing to fear”. Answering a question about possible sanctions, he said “unless the Commission and other political forces want ot destroy the EU they will handle those tools with care”.