Hungary may not be an ideal venue for Ukraine. The 1994 memorandum signed by the U.S., U.K., Ukraine, and Russia, which aimed to uphold Kyiv’s sovereignty in return for nuclear disarmament, lost significance after Putin’s 2014 aggression and the absence of military aid from signatories.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, known for his close ties with Trump and ongoing relations with the Kremlin amid Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, has not issued any public statement on this matter.
On February 25, 2022, a day following Russia’s attack on Ukraine, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó hinted that Budapest could serve as a neutral location for both Ukrainian and Russian parties.
Russian authorities have downplayed the likelihood of a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy, leaving the choice of venue uncertain.
In an interview released Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron recommended Geneva as a potential location, an idea supported by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis confirmed Switzerland’s readiness to host such a meeting, assuring that Putin wouldn’t face arrest despite an International Criminal Court warrant for war crimes.
During an unexpected call with Trump on Monday, Putin proposed Moscow as a venue for a face-to-face meeting with Zelenskyy. This suggestion was swiftly rejected as serious by Zelenskyy and European leaders during a multilateral meeting with Trump at the White House.
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