LOS ANGELES.–Hungarian President Viktor Orban, 61, defied the European Union visiting 71-year-old Russian President Vladimir Putin as the current rotating head of the European Council. Orban’s visit was not about appeasing Putin at all but as statesmanship, keeping lines of communication open between Moscow and the European Union. President Joe Biden, 81, has set a belligerent tone with Russia since the Feb. 24, 2022 Ukraine invasion, accusing Putin of a naked imperial land grab in Ukraine, much the same as Adolf Hitler in 1939. Biden’s comparison to Hilter is an outrageous distortion to the current picture that leaves Biden funding proxy war in Ukraine against the Russian Federation. Biden provoked the conflict by failing to discuss with Putin new security arrangements for Ukraine, instead arming Ukraine to the teeth, presenting a national security threat to Russia.
Orban’s decision to visit Moscow demonstrates the kind of statesmanship needed to bring the two-and-a-half year conflict to a merciful end. Ukraine’s war with the Kremlin, led by 46-year-old President Volodymyr Zelensky, makes unrealistic demands on Putin for any peace talks, insisting that he remove all his troops from Ukraine and be prosecuted as a war criminal in The Hague’s International Criminal Court. “The number of countries that can talk to both warring sides is diminishing,” said Obrban. “Hungary is slowly becoming the only country in Europe that can speak to everyone,” referring to his recent visit to Kiev to speak with Zelensky about ending the war. Orban shares the same view of the Ukraine War as 78-year-old former President Donald Trump, now running for U.S. president. Trump believes that peace talks must be the highest priority for the United States.
Biden has continued to press Congress to arm Ukraine but, more importantly, fund the bankrupt Kiev government that lacks the resources to fund its own government. Battling the Kremlin has destroyed Ukraine’s infrastructure, killed thousands of its citizens and driven millions more into exile, only damaging the Ukrainian economy. Biden and Zelensky have gaslighted the U.S. and European Union that’ll they vanquish the Russian Federation. Zelensky has been encouraged by Biden to keep fighting the Kremlin, with no evidence he’ll do anything other than destroy Ukraine. Biden’s Ukraine policy has failed, only creating more death and destruction to the country. Orban, like Trump, thinks the path forward is with diplomacy, the only real way to end the conflict. Zelensky has rejected every peace plan presented that would end the bloody conflict.
Meeting with Putin at the Kremlin, Orban told Putin that “Europe needs peace,” serving notice that he was open to any proposal that would bring about an eventual peace deal. Orban engaged Putin in a discussing about the way forward, not Biden’s plan for perpetual war. “The principle of no agreements on Ukraine without Ukraine remains inviolable for our country,” said Ukraine’s foreign minister, completely missing the point. Orban talked with Putin not about any secret deals but about opening the doors of communication to see where both sides could find common ground to stop the bloodshed. All the fake accusations that Orban was appeasing Putin or making secret deals was preposterous. He wanted Putin to know that not everyone in Europe wants to perpetuate the war with the Kremlin. Orban wants the EU to stop the inflammatory rhetoric about Putin and Hitler.
U.S. and foreign press have deliberately distorted the purpose of a truce or ceasefire talks, accusing Orban of appeasing a dangerous dictator. “This is about appeasement. It’s not about peace,” said EU officials criticizing Orban’s Trip. But those that know Orban, know that he sincerely wants to open the doors for an eventual settlement. EU officials wanted Putin to know that Orban came to Moscow not with EU approval but only speaking about bilateral relations between Moscow and Budapest. Orban’s visit “takes place, exclusively, in the framework of bilateral relations between Hungary and Russia,” said outgoing EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell. “Prime Minister Orban has not received any mandate from the EU Council to visit Moscow,” Borrell said, reflecting the pro-Ukrainian War inside current EU leadership, leading to new controversial elections.
Orban proved that one man can make a difference when it comes to war-and-peace. Seeking only to pave the way for an eventual settlement of the Ukraine War, Orban showed that he doesn’t follow the EU horde that follows Biden into the trap of perpetual war in Europe. Talking tough to Putin is not the way to bring about peace in Ukraine. Putin has made it clear he wants to settle the conflict, just not on Zelensky’s terms. If Trump becomes president, Orban’s statesmanship will pay off, because Trump will use all the leverage of the U.S. to bring both sides to the peace table. “The European Council is clear: Russia is the aggressor, Ukraine is the victim. No discussions about Ukraine can take place without Ukraine,” wrote European Council President Charles Michel. Michel should commend Orban for taking steps to advance peace on the European Continent.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
