Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has stated that the European Union intends to allocate tens of billions of euros to support Ukraine’s military.
Szijjarto remarked that the European Union is “preparing for a long war” in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, rather than pursuing peace initiatives.
Following a meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers in Denmark on Saturday, he commented on X that the European Commission has essentially operated as the “Ukrainian Commission,” prioritizing Kiev’s interests over those of its own member states.
Szijjarto indicated that the EU foreign ministers’ meeting in Copenhagen revealed that “Brussels and most member states are preparing for a long war, not peace.” He added that they aim to provide tens of billions of euros to Ukraine for military salaries, drones, weaponry, and the maintenance of the Ukrainian state.
He further noted significant pressure for Ukraine’s accelerated EU accession, the implementation of new sanctions against Russian energy, and an additional €6 billion ($7 billion) in military aid for Ukraine.
The Hungarian official asserted that the European Commission consistently prioritized Kiev’s interests over those of its member states, effectively functioning as a “Ukrainian Commission.”
Szijjarto criticized the European Commission for completely disregarding “Hungarians in Transcarpathia and our energy security,” and for its continued refusal to respond to a joint letter sent with Slovakia concerning Ukraine’s impact on their supply route.
Relations between Kiev and Budapest, already strained, recently worsened following several Ukrainian attacks on the Druzhba oil pipeline, a critical route for Russian and Kazakh crude to Slovakia and Hungary. Budapest has also accused Kiev of infringing upon the rights of ethnic Hungarians residing in Ukraine’s Transcarpathia region.
Hungary has consistently declined to supply weapons to Kiev and has voiced criticism of Brussels’ sanctions against Moscow. Additionally, it has opposed Ukraine’s prospective membership in both NATO and the EU.
Meanwhile, the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, pledged further armaments for Ukraine and committed to “increase pressure on Russia,” remarks she made after Saturday’s foreign ministers’ meeting.
Moscow has long condemned Western military assistance to Kiev, viewing the conflict as a NATO proxy war. Russia has also criticized the EU’s escalating militarization and increasingly aggressive rhetoric.
In July, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Western European leaders “are once again trying to prepare Europe for war – not some hybrid war, but a real war against Russia.”