US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has arrived in Hungary for talks with Prime Minister Viktor Orban Monday, ahead of elections where the nationalist leader faces a significant challenge from the opposition.
Rubio's visit is the final stage of a whirlwind trip to Europe that also saw him address the Munich Security Conference and visit another right-wing ally, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico.
Read moreRubio visits Slovakia, meets pro-Trump Fico
US President Donald Trump has made no secret of his high regard for Orban, saying in a social media post on Friday that the prime minister had produced "phenomenal" results in Hungary.
In a speech on Saturday, Orban insisted he would keep up his fight against "pseudo-civil organisations, bought journalists, judges, politicians" – a tirade not unlike those favoured by Trump.
He also took aim at the "oppressive machinery of Brussels", another jibe at the European Union's leadership, with whom he has long been at loggerheads on a host of issues.
Orban is in the firing line of the EU's leadership for what they say is his silencing of critical voices in the judiciary, academia, the media and civil society. They also accuse him of going after minorities.
Adding to tension with the EU is the close relationship he has maintained with Russia's President Vladimir Putin – another thing he has in common with Trump.
To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement.
One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site.
© FRANCE 24
06:08
'Puppet' of foreign powers
Rubio's visit comes ahead of Hungary's parliamentary election on April 12, which has seen opposition leader Peter Magyar emerge as the biggest threat to Orban since he returned to power in 2010.
Magyar's Tisza party has been running ahead of Orban's Fidesz in opinion polls for many months.
At an election rally Sunday, Magyar accused Orban of corruption, cracking down on civil liberties and being a "puppet" of foreign powers.
"It is time to call corruption by its name: theft," Magyar told hundreds of supporters at the rally, accusing the prime minister's supporters of diverting billions of dollars.
He said his party would guarantee "total transparency in contracts involving public funds" and "recover" all the money Hungary "has been deprived of over 16 years".
Magyar also accused Orban of spying on opponents and promised to bolster civil liberties.
"If they can search through my private life, then they can rummage through everyone's," said Magyar, who said he would propose "a country where everyone can live in peace".
Opposition and rights groups regularly accuse Orban of silencing critical voices in the judiciary, academia and media, as well as cutting the rights of minority groups.
Conciliatory tone
Rubio arrived in Budapest on Sunday evening, and was due to hold talks with Orban on Monday morning before flying back to Washington.
The decision to visit Fico and Orban, two nationalist leaders close to both Trump and Putin -- and out of step with the EU consensus – sends a clear diplomatic message.
In his speech on Saturday to the Munich Security Conference, Rubio called on Europe to join Trump in his fight to defend Western civilisation from the threat of mass immigration.
But he tried, too, to reassure European leaders over the US position on NATO, and on Greenland – with mixed success.
Read moreUS doesn't want to separate from Europe 'but revitalise' alliance, Rubio tells allies
But if his main message was that Europe should get behind the vision of the US president, in Bratislava on Sunday he stressed: "We're not asking Europe to be a vassal of the United States.
"We want to be your partner. We want to work with Europe. We want to work with our allies."
Orban is one of several leaders to have announced he will travel to Washington next week for the inaugural meeting of Trump's controversial "Board of Peace" – which critics see as an instrument designed to undermine the UN Security Council.
Orban became a hero to many Trump supporters for his hostility to migration during the Syrian refugee crisis a decade ago. He has made several visits to Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
And energy will be on the agenda in Monday's talks, just as it was in Slovakia.
When Orban visited the White House in 2025, Trump granted Hungary an exemption from sanctions imposed on Russian oil and gas imports over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
English (US) · 