Speaking at an annual State of the Nation address in Budapest to a closed circle of party members and supporters, Orbán described Ukraine as a buffer zone between Russia and NATO countries, and predicted that,

The independence of Hungary's courts has been a contentious issue, causing a rift between Prime Minister Viktor Orban's nationalist government and the European Union. Judges began to express discontent in November when an agreement was signed between the government and the three main judicial representative bodies that tied salary rises to broad-based reforms.

Hungary will be the one to decide whether Ukraine is able to achieve its hopes of joining the European Union in the future, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Saturday in an escalation of his adversarial posture toward Hungary’s war-ravaged neighbor.

Hungary wants the European Union to remove eight individuals from its sanctions list against Russia. In that case, it may support the extension of restrictions, Reuters informs. According to the media outlet,

Hungary has announced that it will not rush to approve the extension of European Union (EU) sanctions on Russian individuals, despite strong pressure from Brussels. The country’s foreign minister, who is currently in Washington for diplomatic discussions,

FM Szijjarto also recalled that in January, Hungary received a four-point guarantee from the European Commission regarding energy security. However, even the simplest of these commitments was not honored—last week, a consultation on gas transit was held without Hungary being invited.

Hungary seeks to remove eight individuals from the EU's Russia sanctions list and demands new guarantees on Ukraine gas transit discussions before consenting to sanctions renewal. Despite the EU's need for unanimous agreement to extend sanctions,

For three years we have been resisting pressure, for three years we have refused to be pushed into their war policy, now we will endure it!' says foreign minister - Anadolu Ajansı

Ireland has confirmed its intention to join a European Commission infringement case against Hungary at the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced an income tax exemption for mothers of two or three children and said he would cap interest rates on housing loans at 5% from April as part of moves to shore up the economy ahead of a 2026 national election.

For us in Central Europe, it is entirely clear that good U.S.–Russia relations can form the foundation of global peace. We hope that the upcoming agreement will not only focus on restoring peace to Europe but also become a broader accord that serves as a cornerstone for future global security,