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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday discussed the war in Ukraine in a call with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who is casting himself as a possible peacemaker.
“There was a thorough exchange of views on Ukrainian issues,” the Kremlin said in its readout of the call, adding that Putin said Kyiv had adopted a “destructive” position that ruled out a peace agreement.
The call was initiated at Orban’s request, the Kremlin said, and comes a day after Budapest’s top diplomat said Hungary would forge ahead with its self-styled Ukraine “peace mission.”
Orban met U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to secure a peace deal within hours of coming to office in January, at his Mar-a-Lago estate earlier this week.
“Viktor Orban expressed interest in assisting the joint search for political-diplomatic paths to resolve the crisis,” the Kremlin said.
The Hungarian leader — the closest political partner of both Trump and Putin in the European Union — has repeatedly called for peace talks and refused to send military aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
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He infuriated fellow EU leaders in July by conducting breakaway diplomacy with Russia to explore a path to ending the conflict, just days after taking over the bloc’s rotating six-month presidency.
Orban and Putin also discussed energy projects, the Kremlin said.
To the frustration of Brussels, Budapest remains a major buyer of Russian energy almost three years after Moscow ordered troops into Ukraine.
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