NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also extended his compliments in the past couple of days, the statement said, adding that Herbert Kickl, head of Austria’s Freedom Party, and Martin Helme, head of the Estonian Conservative People’s Party, had also written congratulatory letters.

Former US President Donald Trump called Orbán on Tuesday to congratulate him.

The prime minister also talked to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, Bertalan Havasi said.

The presidents congratulated Orbán and pledged to strengthen bilateral ties with Hungary, he said.

Earlier: 

International Leaders Congratulate PM Orbán on Election Landslide

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday congratulated Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on the ruling Fidesz-Christian Democrat alliance’s victory in Hungary’s general election, the Kremlin’s press office said.

Putin said he hoped that “despite the difficult international situation, bilateral partnership ties will develop fully in line with the interests of the people of Russia and Hungary,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told a press conference that the results of Hungary’s democratic election should be respected.

“Regardless of our relations with Hungary, we must note that the Fidesz-Christian Democrat alliance won its fourth consecutive election with the best possible results, securing a two-thirds majority in the process,” he said.

Concerning sanctions against Russia, the Polish prime minister said “Hungary should not be used as a diversion” by the media when Germany had delayed strong sanctions.

The European Union is not hindered in imposing more stringent sanctions by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán but rather “by large countries looking out for their business ties,” he said, noting that Orbán had so far voted for all sanctions. Answering a question, Morawiecki said he would ask Orbán to support even stricter sanctions against Russia.

Czech President Miloš Zeman wired a message of congratulation to Orbán, saying “the Hungarian people support you because you have always put their interests first, and see serving your country as a calling.” He praised Hungarian-Czech cooperation, and called for the Visegrad Group to be given high priority.

“I am convinced that central Europe has great potential in bilateral and international cooperation,” he said. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said he hoped Hungary would “take a more active part” in finding a solution to the situation in Ukraine.

“Europe has to be united its support of Ukraine, where Russia is committing war crimes,” he said. Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša congratulated Orbán and Fidesz in a tweet “on this historic victory for Hungary, Europe and the entire free world.”

Former Slovak President Robert Fico, the head of the opposition Smer-SD party, said Orbán had “very clearly” built on Hungary’s independence and economic prosperity. Orbán puts Hungarian interests first, and did not allow the country to be “dragged into” the conflict in Ukraine, he said.

Fico said the election results in Hungary were “not surprising at all”, and he noted that during his presidency, he and Orbán had worked together to ensure stable Hungarian-Slovak ties.

Bertalan Havasi, the prime minister’s press chief, said later on Monday that numerous other heads of state and government have also congratulated Orbán.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called him by phone on Monday, as did Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić , Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, and Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger, he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India congratulated Orbán on Twitter and Li Keqiang of China wired a message of congratulations, Havasi said.

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, Croatian President Zoran Milanović and French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, among others, published statements, he said.


MTI/PM's press office photo: Zoltán Fischer