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Hungary's Prime Minister Orbán: "Russia works differently than we do"

Photo: Fehim Demir / EPA

Russian President Vladimir Putin can no longer be as sure of his position as before after the rebellion of the Wagner mercenary group and its advance towards Moscow. Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin surprisingly had his troops turn around at the weekend, possibly avoiding heavier fighting between the mercenaries and the regular Russian army. But the shock is deep after the incident.

However, Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán now apparently classifies the significance of the events as only minor. Putin has not been weakened by the Wagner revolt, and the uprising is of no "greater importance," Orbán said in an interview published by the Bild newspaper, among others.

A quick end to the revolt as a "sign of strength"

The impression of weakness that Putin gave during the uprising is based on miscalculations by the West, which does not understand Russia: "Russia works differently than we do. The structures in Russia are very stable," Orbán said, referring to Russia's large military and security apparatus. So do not forget that the Russians are not such a country as us, Germany or Hungary. It's a different world. (...) So if you want to understand how they work from our logic, we will always be mistaken," said the Hungarian.

Rather, it was "a sign of strength" that the Kremlin chief had stopped the revolt within 24 hours, Orbán said. Ukraine is "no longer a sovereign country" because it relies on Western help to defend itself against Russia. According to Orbán, peace depends on the United States. "They can only fight because we in the West support them. So if the Americans decide they want peace, there will be peace."

Orban does not want to call Putin a war criminal

Orbán apparently did not elaborate on the fact that Russia is waging a war of aggression in violation of international law. When asked if he thought Putin was a war criminal, Orbán said no. It is "not a good idea" to talk about it if you want a ceasefire with Putin.

The right-wing populist has maintained good contacts with Putin for years and maintained them even after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. The authoritarian Orbán has been at loggerheads with the EU for years – and in recent months has repeatedly prevented new EU sanctions against Russia – such as a complete oil embargo or planned punitive measures against the Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill.

Orbán described the question of how his position fits in with his 1989 demand for a withdrawal of Soviet troops from the then Eastern Bloc state of Hungary as a "provocation". He stressed: "You know, telling Hungarians that we are pro-Russians or friends of Russians is contrary to our historical experience. I'm fighting for Hungary. I don't care about Putin."

fek/dpa