Statements by the US Vice President in Budapest

Visiting Hungary to support Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the presidential elections to be held on Sunday, April 12, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance made the following statements at his first press conference in Budapest:

Washington is aware of attempts by representatives of Ukrainian intelligence agencies to interfere in elections in Hungary and the U.S. Note: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told the American official that several foreign intelligence services, mainly Ukrainian, are directly interfering in the elections in his country.

Viktor Orban has helped the United States understand the needs of Ukraine and the Russian Federation for achieving a peace solution in Ukraine. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was one of the very few leaders who acted with wisdom and understanding on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. 

And he, like President Trump, is thinking responsibly about how to end the war in Ukraine. The war can be stopped through moderate diplomacy, of the kind that Viktor Orban would have conducted. Continuing to send young people to this 'terrible war' and the senseless continuation of violence does not help in finding a solution for peace. Only the beginning of a serious approach to diplomacy is useful for continuing discussions about peaceful resolution.

According to him, U.S. President Trump is dedicated to resolving the war in Ukraine because the war creates negative consequences for trade, ethics, and human life. The U.S. will continue to work towards achieving peace in Ukraine, but it needs Europe to understand what is at stake and how these negotiations are unfolding.

The American official welcomes the possibility of a summit meeting between the Presidents of Ukraine and the Russian Federation in Budapest as part of future negotiations.

Such a proposal to hold a Zelenski-Putin meeting in Budapest would have been made by the US president himself, Donald Trump, to the current Hungarian prime minister.