After meeting with Putin, Orban says Ukraine must give up its territories
29 November 2025 10:26
After the war, Ukraine, according to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, should continue to exist as a “buffer state” between Russia and NATO.
“The only possible long-term solution is for the post-war order to be based on the fundamental principle that Ukraine will once again become a buffer state, as it once was,” he said in an interview with the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag (WamS), "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
At the same time, Orban considers territorial concessions to Ukraine, which was attacked by Russia, inevitable.
“Russia retains the territory that will be agreed upon at an international peace conference, and everything west of this line – up to the eastern border of NATO – forms the territory of the Ukrainian state, which will again exist as a buffer state,” the Prime Minister said.
In his opinion, NATO and Russia should also agree “on the size and equipment of the limited Ukrainian armed forces that will be allowed to operate in the buffer zone,” and both sides should “give guarantees that no one will subordinate this buffer state to their own authority.” Orban noted that this is subject to discussion. “International law knows the tools with which to create such a system of guarantees,” he said.
on November 28, Orban met with Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks in the Kremlin. This is the Hungarian prime minister’s second visit to Moscow since 2024. He is considered Putin’s closest partner among all EU leaders. The official topic of the talks was Budapest’s commitment to provide the country with cheap Russian energy for the next year. In addition, Orban again invited Putin to Budapest for peace talks on Ukraine.
“Time is playing into Russia’s hands, not Ukraine’s”
In an interview with WamS, the head of the Hungarian government called for “abandoning illusions and facing reality,” which is reflected in the 28-point US peace plan. “First, time is playing into Russia’s hands, not Ukraine’s, which means that the longer peace is postponed, the more people and territories Ukraine will lose,” Orban said.
Secondly, according to him, Russia will be reintegrated into the global economy in accordance with American demands.
“Sanctions will be gradually lifted, frozen assets will be used to create US-Russian investment funds, and business will resume,” he said.
As a third point, the Prime Minister added:
“The fairy tale that Europeans will finance the war with money from Russia is over. We have to admit to our citizens that every euro we have spent so far and every euro we will spend in the future to support Ukraine will be fully, 100 percent” paid by the people.
