Orbán on Wagner Mutiny: This Event Does Not Matter

Tuesday, 27 June 2023

Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary, has stated that he considers the mutiny of the Wagner Private Military Company in Russia to be an unimportant event.

"I don't see much significance in this event," Orbán said in the interview with Bild, answering questions about his thoughts on the march of Yevgeny Prigozhin's Wagner fighters to Moscow.

He noted that the Hungarian special services had information about what was happening in Russia, and according to them, "it is not important".

Orbán has clarified that he does not consider President Putin to be weakened after the events of this weekend.

"If this could happen, it's a clear sign of weakness. But if it happened in 24 hours, it's a sign of strength... You know, Putin is the president of Russia. So if anyone suggests that he might fail or that he might be replaced, then he does not understand the Russian people and Russian power structures," Orbán said.

He added that in Russia, everything functions differently than in European countries. According to the Hungarian Prime Minister, Putin will remain president in 2024.

"Russia does not work the way we do. The structures in Russia are very stable. They are based on the army, special services, and police, so it is a different country, it is a military-oriented country," the head of the Hungarian government said.

According to Orbán, Prigozhin's trip to Moscow will have no effect on the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine.

"I think that everything is over, and the war continues. This is not an event that will lead us to peace, because I always look at this war from the point of view of peace, because I think that the most important thing is to achieve a cease-fire and somehow to agree to peace. This event will not play any role in that," Orbán said.

Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, stated that official Budapest knew about the finale of "Prigozhin’s mutiny" even before it became known publicly on Saturday night.

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