Hungary says its supports Russian-American negotiations to achieve lasting peace in Ukraine

Budapest fully supports Russian-American negotiations on resolving the Ukrainian conflict and believes they will lead to peace, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Szijjarto stressed that efforts to achieve peace in Ukraine are fraught with challenges, as opponents of peace settlement persist, but Hungary and Russia are resolved to overcome them.

"We consider the current peace plan under discussion to be an important ray of hope. And we absolutely fully support Russian-American negotiations on this issue. We are confident that Russian-American dialogue will lead to peace," he said.

Szijjarto, who arrived from Türkiye where he held meetings along with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, said that when peace is achieved, it will also mark the end of the current economic situation worldwide, exacerbated by sanctions.

"Unfortunately, sanctions have lasted too long and have had a significant impact, mainly due to Europe. We believe that this new incoming economic period holds enormous opportunities for us. And we want to ensure ourselves the best possible starting position," he said.

Lavrov, for his part, expressed his intent to discuss efforts toward resolving the Ukrainian conflict with his Hungarian counterpart.

"I know that, like the Russian Federation, Hungary sees one of the main goals of these efforts as ensuring reliable security in Europe," he said.

Hungarian capital Budapest is considered to be a possible platform for a meeting between Russian and US presidents for discussions of the Ukrainian settlement.