According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Minister reported after his meeting with Marco Rubio that the United States has not given up on its efforts to organize the peace summit, the only issue in this regard is the timing, as they would like the meeting to bring about a real result that is reassuring for everyone and can bring closer long-term sustainable peace in Central Europe.

"So it's not a question of whether they want a peace summit. It's not a question of whether there will be one. The only question is the timing of when the preparations will be brought to a stage where the summit can definitely end with something positive in terms of peacemaking," he said.

"This also means that preparations are ongoing. That is, the news, fake news, rumors that the negotiations were broken off here, that the preparations were abandoned, and that was all that was left are false. This is not true, this is a lie, this is fake news," he continued.

"Preparations are still underway. The two foreign ministers are in contact with each other and will continue the work that will lead to a successful peace summit," he added, and believed that this was "very good news for those in favor of peace, but bad news for those in favour of war. "

"The fact that if we manage to prepare the peace summit, it will be held in Budapest is not a question. So this does not even arise as a question, the Americans continue to highly appreciate and value Hungary's pro-peace policy (...) They appreciate that Hungary is trying to contribute in every possible way to establishing peace in Central Europe," he said.

Earlier:

Hungary remains ready to host a US-Russia peace summit as this is the only way offering hope for resolving the war in Ukraine, Peter Szijjártó, the foreign minister, said in an interview with CNN in Washington this Tuesday.

According to a statement by his ministry, Szijjarto welcomed the fact that the US and Russian presidents spoke with each other again last week so there is hope for a personal meeting in Budapest, even though questions have been raised concerning its timing.

Szijjarto said Hungary remained ready to host the summit. The government has represented the cause of peace over the past three and a half years, he said, adding that Hungary would provide all necessary conditions for its success and expressing hope that it would take place.

Szijjarto: Peace efforts must not be undermined by fake news

The "fake news" being pushed by the "pro-war liberal mainstream" about the planned Budapest US-Russia summit over the past few days must not be allowed to undermine the peace efforts, Peter Szijjarto, Hungary’s foreign minister, said in Washington, DC.

Szijjarto said, according to a ministry statement, that he will meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for talks, which will also cover the planned Budapest peace summit.

He said the liberal mainstream was against the US-Russia summit because it would be held in Budapest, and "it’s hard for them to stomach that Prime Minister Viktor Orban is the only European politician today who has maintained normal civilised cooperation based on mutual respect with the leaders of both the Eastern and Western world powers."

Another reason behind the attempts to undermine the summit, he said, was that "they don’t want peace, and if they can prevent the peace summit from going ahead, then they can obviously thwart the peace process".
 

"So I’m not at all surprised that there’s been a constant deluge of reports, rumours and fake news from various media outlets in recent days claiming that there won’t be a peace summit, or that there might not be one, or there won’t be one for now," the minister said.
 

He said this was "natural", arguing that the the interests of the "pro-war camp and their media" lay in the peace summit falling through, and they were "fighting it with their own means".
 

"Their means are fake news, rumours and citing unnamed officials," Szijjarto said. "This is what we have to expect until the peace summit happens."

"What else is new? This happens all the time," he said, adding that "these are the kinds of rumours that are spread before crucial European Council meetings". "When it’s time to decide on the European Peace Facility, or when a decision on a sanctions package is coming up, there’s a constant flood of these kinds of fake news and a constant turbulence in the international media," he added.
 

"That’s how it is now; we mustn’t be deceived by this or allow it to diminish our efforts," he said.

Szijjarto said Hungary was prepared to serve as a venue for a peace summit when the US and Russia wanted to hold one.

"So we will obviously have more information on this matter after today’s meeting with the secretary of state," he said. "Hungary is ready. We are pro-peace, and we want to contribute to the return of peace to central Europe in every way possible."
 

Earlier: 

Budapest is set to host a high-stakes meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, potentially within the next two weeks, according to an announcement by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

The summit is intended to pave the way for a resolution to the ongoing war in Ukraine, with preparations for the diplomatic event already fully underway by an organising committee established by Orbán.

Citing Hungary's "pro-peace" position maintained consistently for three years, Orbán asserted that when viewing a map of Europe and its leaders, Budapest was the logical and predictable choice.

"Hungary is just about the only pro-peace country," he remarked, drawing a parallel with the country’s stance on migration where he felt justified despite being a European outlier.

Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó confirmed Hungary's readiness, declaring the country an "island of peace" and stating that all necessary conditions would be provided for successful, secure, and calm talks.

Szijjártó has already consulted with US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to begin preparations, noting that if the preparatory meeting between the US and Russian foreign ministers next week is successful, the presidential summit could follow a week later.

Orbán also confirmed he spoke with President Putin by phone on Friday to discuss the preparations. Hungary's counter-terrorism force, TEK, will provide the personal security for both leaders and their delegations in cooperation with international and Hungarian security services.

For Prime Minister Orbán, the summit is an essential step towards ending the conflict, a "three-year struggle for peace" he said requires perseverance.

He estimates that an end to the war would cause Hungarian economic growth to "double or triple," arguing that the "cost and inconvenience that Budapest residents will have to endure" is worthwhile as "we can’t make as much money from anything as we can from peace." Orbán noted that the European Union has spent 180 billion euros on the war so far.

Orbán used the occasion to criticise the rest of the European Union, which he views as "pro-war" and therefore logically excluded from the summit, though he insisted they should not be left out of the subsequent peace deal.

He urged Europe to follow Hungary’s example by keeping diplomatic channels open to pursue its own interests. He stressed that while the summit is a significant political achievement for Hungary and a moment of national excitement, its ultimate purpose is peace, not domestic fanfare.

The European Commission, meanwhile, offered qualified support, with a spokesman welcoming the prospects of a meeting in Budapest provided that the talks contribute to a "fair and lasting peace for Ukraine," while still maintaining its commitment to weakening Russia’s war capabilities and its proposed 19th package of sanctions.

The possibility of President Putin travelling to an EU-member state despite the International Criminal Court arrest warrant has generated commentary, but Minister Szijjártó stated that Hungary will receive Putin with respect and ensure his safe passage, adding that no consultation was needed on the sanctions issue as Hungary is a sovereign country.

Orbán also noted that a post-peace security and military development plan would be required for Europe to reduce its current dependence on the US.

The Prime Minister’s comments also touched on domestic policy, reiterating his government's belief in leaving maximum funds with citizens and businesses.

He contrasted this with opposition parties who, he claims, favour leftist economic policy involving tax increases on items like pensions, while his government supports measures like the 13th month pension and keeping the possibility of a 14th month pension on the agenda, dependent on the economic strength that peace would bring.

Kremlin: Good personal relations contributed to Budapest being chosen as summit venue

Prime Minister Viktor Orban's good relations with US President Donald and Russian President Vladimir Putin contributed to Budapest being tapped as the venue of the summit on the situation in Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

"We have a lot of homework to do. There must be work done between ... our and the US foreign ministry," he said.

Foreign affairs spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told the TASS news agency that the Russian and Hungarian foreign ministers had already had talks, and preparation was ongoing through diplomatic channels.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US counterpart Marco Rubio "will speak to each other soon."

Russia hopes that the summit would bring progress towards the peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, and that they could discuss bilateral ties, the spokesman said.

Budapest Peace Summit - Zelensky ready to meet Putin in Budapest

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is ready to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest, Zelensky told US television channel NBC on Sunday, following talks with Donald Trump, the US president.

In his interview, Zelensky compared Putin to the Hamas terrorist organisation, but said he was ready to meet him personally at a planned peace summit in Budapest.

Asked if Ukraine could give up territory for peace, Zelensky said the war could be ended through diplomatic means but suggested that his country would not make further territorial concessions to Russia.

Szijjarto: Many will do everything to prevent Budapest peace summit

Many will do everything they can to prevent a peace summit in Budapest and to block any chance of peace, Peter Szijjarto, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on X on Monday.

Szijjarto commented on a statement by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who said that he was ready to attend the planned US-Russia summit, but that he did not see Budapest as "the most fitting venue".

"We have said ahead of time: many will do everything they can to prevent a Peace Summit in Budapest and to block any chance of peace," Szijjarto said, according to a ministry statement.

Photo Credit: Kreml

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