Russian President Vladimir Putin and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán spoke by telephone about the war in Ukraine at the request of the Hungarian side, Kremlin officials said.
Orbán expressed his willingness to contribute to the political and diplomatic efforts to find a solution to the ongoing conflict and said he could use his contacts with Western politicians, Moscow officials said.
Putin said Kiev was pursuing a destructive approach and was still ruling out any possibility of a peaceful settlement, the Kremlin said.
Orbán later posted on his Facebook page that Hungary would use all diplomatic means to broker a ceasefire. Analysts have noted that this is a signal that the call has not yielded tangible results.
Despite the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Orbán maintains close contacts with Moscow. He made a surprise visit to Putin in July at the start of Hungary’s presidency of the EU Council, drawing criticism from EU colleagues who showed solidarity with Kiev.
