“Since the terrorist attacks in Paris, it is not just the threat of terrorism that we need to talk about but real attacks, and Hungary is taking the war on terror seriously,” he said, adding that controls against the wave of migrants from the south should be stepped up.

Orbán noted Hungary’s commitment made at last year’s NATO summit in Wales to increase defence spending to 2% of GDP and said the long-term goal was to raise spending each year. He noted there are two ongoing crises that pose a threat to the region: the Ukraine conflict and the inflow of migrants, and among them terrorists from the Middle East and North Africa.

Orbán said Hungary is working closely with Ukraine, adding that Kiev is headed in the right direction but is far from being considered stable.

Hungary will do all it can to help stabilise Ukraine, he added. On the topic of the Middle East, Orbán said Hungary is contributing financial aid to the region and is also sending soldiers there to train local fighters. Europe should implement stricter measures to manage the flow of migrants, he said, adding that the authorities must identify every single migrant and find out why they came to Europe.

Stoltenberg said the targets of last week’s deadly attacks in Paris were not just innocent people but also Europe’s core values and free democratic societies, which he said must be protected. He noted that several member states had offered to share intelligence information with France.

NATO is also looking into expanding its capacities in the Middle East so that countries in the region can better defend themselves and fight extremism and terrorism with their own forces, with help from NATO.

He said it was important to stabilise these countries because if they can fight extremism on their own soil, then NATO member states will be safer as well.

Stoltenberg said the migrant crisis is, at its core, a humanitarian one, and it should be managed by resolving the conflicts in the migrants’ countries of origin.

On the Ukraine conflict, he said Russia was stepping up its aggression there and noted that ceasefire violations are more and more common on its part. He said all parties involved must adhere to the Minsk Agreement to avoid further violence.

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MTI photo: Bruzák Noémi