Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban declared Ukraine an "enemy" of Hungary during a speech at a rally on Feb. 7, the independent regional outlet Index reported.
Orban, widely seen as the Kremlin's closest ally in the European Union, has repeatedly lashed out at Kyiv and Brussels throughout Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.
Speaking at a rally in the Hungarian city Szombathely on Feb. 7, Orban criticized Ukraine for demanding that the EU halt imports of cheap Russian energy.
"Anyone who says this is an enemy of Hungary, so Ukraine is our enemy," he said.
Orban also railed against Ukraine's EU aspirations, insisting again that while Hungary should cooperate with Ukraine as its neighbor, Kyiv should never be granted membership in the EU.
Hungary has long pushed back against broader EU efforts to cut dependence on Russian energy, wielding its veto power to block sanctions against Moscow and withhold aid to Ukraine.
While polls show Orban to be trailing opposition leader Peter Magyar, Orban dismissed these numbers as "propaganda" at the start of his speech. »
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