Fidesz MEP Tamás Deutsch said on Friday that reactions in Brussels to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's "peace mission" have been "critical, offensive and even hysterical" by some people.
The prime minister told public radio that one of the reasons was that the majority of European leaders were pro-war, and their position was based on the assumption that the only way to peace is war. “The Hungarian prime minister’s mission has refuted and destroyed that position,” he said. The Fidesz MEP said that the formation of the Patriots for Europe group in the EP demonstrated a “victory at the European level”, noting that it was the third strongest formation in the EP. In response to a question, he said there was a realistic chance that Donald Trump would win in the US, and this would bring about a sovereigntist, patriotic turn in world politics, in turn bringing an end to the Ukraine war closer. He said the Patriots for Europe group could further strengthen in the upcoming period, and strategic cooperation could develop with the group of European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) led by Giorgia Meloni. It was uncertain whether Ursula von der Leyen would get the necessary support to head the European Commission again, and there could be certainly a reshuffle among the commissioners, he added.