The furor in Washington, Brussels, and the capitals of NATO and EU member states over the recent trip to Moscow by the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, is very telling.
Despite Hungary currently holding the rotating EU presidency, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell was quick to state
“The Hungarian Prime Minister in no way represents the EU.”
The EU Council President Charles Michel also chimed in—short and simple: “Russia is the aggressor; Ukraine is the victim. No conversation about Ukraine can take place without Ukraine.”
Other European “leaders” (who more appear to be US puppets than anything else) threw in their two cents, such as Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, who is picked to be the next EU High representative for Foreign Affairs, who said
“In Moscow, Viktor Orban in no way represents the EU or the EU’s positions, He is exploiting the EU presidency position to sow confusion. The EU is united, clearly behind Ukraine and against Russian aggression”
An even more ridiculous statement came from Gitanas Nauseda, the Lithuanian President, who snapped
“If you truly seek peace, you don’t shake hands with a bloody dictator, you put all your efforts to support Ukraine”
Fight to the last Ukrainian!
A statement which simply beggars belief, as almost all wars are solved by sitting down with the enemy and having negotiations, unless the EU and US truly intend to “fight to the last Ukrainian”! Needless to say, the White House was just as vehement, with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre saying the visit
“will not advance the cause of peace and is counterproductive to promoting Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence.”
The Hungarian PM’s visit to Moscow came after he visited Kiev to hold discussions with Zelensky, the overstaying President of Ukraine, without much standing or respect these days, to gauge the Kiev junta’s position on the possibility of actually having peace talks, rather than the type of Potemkin village conference as recently held in Switzerland, which has been widely panned as a complete failure due to the refusal of major countries from the global south to attend, or sign off on the joint statement, especially China, nor was one of the parties to the conflict, the Russian Federation, even considered a stakeholder.
Unfortunately, as was to be expected, Viktor Orban could only report that the expectations of the two sides remain very far apart. During the meeting, which was televised, Putin reiterated Russian demands, including guarantees that Ukraine will never join NATO, and the recognition of facts on the ground, including recognition of Russian control over four regions, as Putin said:
“We are talking about the full withdrawal of all troops from the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics [officially Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions], and from the Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions”
Which is currently a non-starter for Ukraine and its western masters, while Viktor Orban promised to continue his shuttle diplomacy with a visit to Beijing, to gauge the Chinese position better, where he was cordially greeted by his Chinese hosts, in stark comparison to the recent receptions given to Anthony Blinken, US Secretary of State, and Ursula von der Leyen, EU Commission president.
After the meeting, Orban said in a social media post:
“[Besides Russia and Ukraine, the end of the war] depends on the decision of three world powers, the United States, the European Union and China.”
Which simply seems to be seeing the world as it is, something US and EU leaders and diplomats seem increasingly unable to do, as if they live in some alternate reality where the other 80% of the world must obey their imperial dictates sent down from on-high.
By contrast, Orban’s diplomacy appears to be greatly appreciated by both the Russian and Chinese leaders, with the Russian government thanking him for his efforts, with Russian spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying:
“Mr. Orban is taking a serious initiative to compare the positions of the different sides based on original sources, and we appreciate these efforts of Mr. Orban, there is a whole set of disagreements among the parties concerned, but at least Mr. Orban is making a very serious attempt to understand the essence of these disagreements, which is very much appreciated”
What is very much apparent, is that Orban, and his counterpart in Slovakia, Fico, are the only adults in the room amongst western leaders, recognizing that the West’s disastrous policies so far, such as NATO enlargement, the manufacturing of “color revolutions” such as the US managed and financed Maidan coup in 2014.
Negotiating in Bad Faith
And we only have to consider the US and EU’s disastrous policies of either negotiating in bad faith, such as the Minsk agreements, or deliberately derailing peace deals as demonstrated in 2022 in terms of the tentative deal reached between Russia and Ukraine. This will be regretted, as the Russians were far more generous to Ukraine than anything they would be prepared to agree to at this time.
The US and European self-destructive sanctions and the supply of all types of weapons, mostly obsolete, which the Ukrainian junta happily uses against civilian targets under the direction of NATO “instructors”, will only lead to economic ruin of the EU, the potential failure of NATO, and the likelihood of igniting a full-scale war between nuclear powers.
Western Strategy in the Ukraine Conflict
The question arises, albeit somewhat mockingly: what is it about a genuine peace process that terrifies Europeans and Americans? It is evident that the ongoing war has wreaked havoc on Europe. Europe faces the self-imposed hardship of losing cheap energy supplies from Russia and being cut off from a profitable Russian consumer market. Additionally, sanctions appear to have actually bolstered the Russian economy, prompting neutral countries to reconsider their exposure to the West’s perceived imperialist economic policies, such as China, India and other members of BRICS—and also potential members of the economic block.
In fact, there are no positive results of European actions that I can see; the only Western nation that has reaped any benefits is the United States, which has managed to weaken an economic competitor: the European Union, rather than Russia.
It seems plausible to suggest that Western leaders are so intimidated by Washington that they are willing to risk economic, and possibly military, ruin by persisting in their support for a Ukrainian military victory. This stance appears delusional if they believe a Ukrainian triumph is even remotely achievable.
In summary, the Western approach to the conflict has been disastrously counterproductive for Europe. The strategy appears to primarily benefit the United States, driven by an underlying fear of Washington and unrealistic expectations regarding the conflict’s resolution.
Psychopathic Racists and Small Barking Dogs
Perhaps psychopathic racists like Donald Tusk, (and wife), Scholz, Baerbok, and the Baltic Chihuahuas fear their own crimes in supporting Zelensky and the Ukrainian neo-Nazis will come to light? So much money has been poured into Ukraine, so many weapons, all without proper oversight, that one is highly suspicious that much of it has been making its way back, under the table, to the senders.
Then there is the not insignificant matter of responsibilities for war crimes committed in the conflict zone, with the recent ATACMS strike on a Crimean beach full of civilians causing the Russian government to directly blame the US for the first time.
What will be interesting will be the next NATO summit to be held in Washington. There are many swords of Damocles hanging over it right now. Particularly after the appalling spectacle of a senile Biden stumbling his way through a debate with Donald Trump, and the strong likelihood that Trump will win the next election and return to the White House, with his views on NATO well known.
Orban is a dove amongst hawks, and we can only hope that he not only continues trying to find a diplomatic solution, and that he avoids the fate of his friend Robert Fico, badly wounded by the “lone gunman” opposed to his refusal to help fuel the war in Ukraine.
Orban has demonstrated some guts and grasp of the reality of the conflict in Ukraine! He deserves the Nobel Peace Prize, and for sure, especially when compared to Obama, who got his for having given a good speech, albeit the lame reality, in Egypt!
Seth Ferris, investigative journalist and political scientist, expert on Middle Eastern affairs, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.