Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, just days after discussing a possible peace agreement for Ukraine with Russian leader Vladimir Putin – a move that caused a sharp reaction among some European leaders, reported Reuters, BTA broadcasts.
Orban and Xi met at the "Diaoyutai" residence. in Beijing, Chinese state media reported.
China, which maintains close ties with Russia, launched a six-point peace plan with Brazil in May, and Hungary's prime minister embarked on a diplomatic tour to push for peace in Ukraine after his country took over the EU's rotating presidency from the start of this month.
"Peaceful mission 3.0", Orban wrote on his official profile on the social network "X" after arriving in Beijing.
Peace mission 3.0 #Beijing pic.twitter.com/DZZFv4qAEH
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) July 7, 2024
The Hungarian leader is making his visit to the Chinese capital after previously being in Kiev, where he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and the Kremlin. The last visit was strongly condemned by Budapest's allies.
"China is a key force in creating conditions for a peaceful settlement of the Russian-Ukrainian war," Orban wrote in "Ex" and added that this is the reason he met the Chinese leader just two months after he visited Budapest.
#China is a key power in creating the conditions for #peace in the #RussiaUkraineWar. This is why I came to meet with President Xi in Beijing, just two months after his official visit to Budapest. #HU24EU #peacemission pic.twitter.com/6UcFkb4ynQ
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) July 8, 2024
"We highly appreciate your peace initiative regarding the conflict in Hungary's neighboring country," the Hungarian prime minister told Xi, according to Hungary's state news agency MTI. "For Hungarians, it is very important that China calls for peace in the world."
Orban is a critic of Western military aid to Ukraine and is the EU leader with the closest relationship to Xi and Putin.
His visit to China comes just days before a NATO summit to discuss further support for Kiev, and following news from the European Commission that it will impose tariffs of up to 37.6% on the import of Chinese electric cars in Europe, notes Reuters.
Hungary has become an important trade and investment partner for China, unlike other EU countries that want to be less dependent on the world's second largest economy.