According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky the Hungarian Prime Minister cannot play the role of mediator to achieve peace. Orban, according to Zelensky, is not influential enough to play the role of mediator for peace between Ukraine and Russia.
"I don't know why he flies to Moscow. It's his personal choice. And on the question of whether he can be a mediator - there is no mediation between Russia and Ukraine. Only serious, strong allies can be mediators," Zelensky said on Monday at a press conference in Warsaw.
According to Zelensky, the mediator must be economically powerful and have an influence on the Russian economy or have a stronger army than the Russian one.
"Are there many such countries in the world? There are few. I think the United States of America and China are such countries. And I think that the European Union is not just one country, but the whole EU. This can really be such a mediation mission," Zelensky said, quoted by the Ukrinform agency.
On July 2, Orban was in Kiev, where he suggested to Zelensky that he consider a temporary ceasefire to achieve a faster path to peace talks.
A few days later, Orbán also landed in Moscow, where he did not offer, or at least is not known to have made the same offer to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Viktor Orbán is in Beijing today.