Budapest. Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Friday praised his country’s role as the host of upcoming talks between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling Hungary “the only place in Europe” where such a meeting could take place.

Trump announced on Thursday that he plans to meet Putin for the second time this year, a day before hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House. A date has not yet been set, but Trump said the talks would be held in Budapest in about two weeks to discuss a possible end to the war in Ukraine.

Hungary’s Isolation in Europe

Speaking to state radio, Orban, a longtime Trump ally and widely regarded as Putin’s closest partner in the European Union, said Hungary’s opposition to Western military and financial aid for Ukraine made Budapest the natural venue for the talks.

“Budapest is essentially the only place in Europe today where such a meeting could be held, primarily because Hungary is almost the only pro-peace country,” Orban said. “For three years, we have been the only country that has consistently, openly, loudly, and actively advocated for peace.”

Orban has often framed his stance as pro-peace while criticizing EU members that continue to support Kyiv. His opponents argue that Hungary’s position favors Moscow and weakens European unity.

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, Hungary, a NATO member, has refused to send weapons to Ukraine or allow their transfer through its territory. Orban has also threatened to veto EU sanctions against Russia and has delayed approval of major funding packages for Kyiv.

Despite calls to reduce energy dependence on Moscow, Hungary has increased imports of Russian fossil fuels since the invasion, standing apart from the rest of the EU.

Critics See a Win for Putin

Peter Kreko, director of the Budapest-based think tank Political Capital, told the AP that holding the Trump-Putin meeting in Hungary, without Ukrainian or EU participation, would be “a huge victory for Putin.”

“He can use the platform of a NATO country for these so-called peace negotiations, at a table where no one is sympathetic to Ukraine or its sovereignty,” Krekó said.

Organizing the meeting could prove challenging. Putin’s travel within Europe is restricted by sanctions and an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for alleged war crimes. As an ICC signatory, Hungary would be obliged to arrest Putin if he visits.

Orban said in April, however, that Hungary intends to withdraw from the ICC, a statement made after he hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also faces an ICC warrant he denies.

Kreko added that a Putin visit would highlight a common thread among the three leaders. “Trump, Putin, and Orbán are all hostile to multilateralism,” he said. “For them, institutions like the EU, NATO, or the ICC are irrelevant, what matters is when strongmen sit at the table and decide the world’s fate.”

A Symbolic Venue

Budapest’s selection carries historical symbolism. It was in the Hungarian capital in 1994 that the Budapest Memorandum was signed, granting Ukraine security assurances in exchange for giving up its nuclear weapons.

Sergiy Gerasymchuk, deputy director of the Kyiv-based think tank Ukrainian Prism, said many Ukrainians associate Budapest with broken promises after Russia violated the agreement by annexing Crimea in 2014 and invading in 2022.

“When I heard about the next Trump-Putin meeting in Budapest, my first thought was: another Budapest memorandum, another deal where Ukraine gives up its interests for nothing,” he said.

He added that the meeting could also serve Orban politically ahead of next year’s election. “Orbán keeps his peacemaker image high on the agenda. Hosting world leaders could be seen as a success story, if not peace in Ukraine, at least global attention on Budapest.”

On Friday, Orban said the talks were “not about Hungary,” but that hosting them was “a political achievement.”