Surprising alliance of Donald Trump, Viktor Orban and Pope Francis that could derail support for Ukraine
A surprising trinity of Donald Trump, Hungary’s right-wing prime minister Viktor Orban and Pope Francis could spell the end to hopes for continued support for Ukraine in fighting the war against Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
The Independent has spoken to Hungary’s ambassador to the Vatican, Eduard Habsburg-Lothringen, who has been critical in attempting to create an international coalition to find a “peace deal” to end the war.
He has spoken about how Pope Francis has played an important role in supporting a deal that will probably see Mr Trump push for Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to cede territory to Russia.
It comes as Sir Keir Starmer held talks in Paris with French president Emmanuel Macron on Monday. Ukraine and the need for a European security pact as part of a post-Brexit reset was at the top of the agenda as the leaders vowed to ensure support for Kyiv continued.
Earlier, defence secretary John Healey defiantly rejected claims the US president-elect will reverse the current Ukraine policy. He toldSky News: “I don’t expect the US to turn away from Nato. They recognise the importance of the alliance. They recognise the importance of avoiding further conflict in Europe.”
The Pope, along with Hungary, has called for a ceasefire and talks “to break the cycle” of war and achieve peace. Mr Orban is seen as being the closest EU leader to Mr Putin, even visiting Moscow over the summer, while he has also been against providing Kyiv with weapons and funds.
Last week at the European Political Community summit, Mr Orban boasted of how “the world is changing” with Mr Trump re-elected, while renewing his demands for a Ukrainian ceasefire.
The clash with Mr Zelensky, who was at the summit, saw the Ukrainian leader note that the Hungarian prime minister is the one Nato member state leader to oppose Ukraine’s membership of the defence alliance.
Since his election less than a week ago, Mr Trump is already reported to have had a telephone conversation with Mr Putin warning him “not to escalate the war” before his inauguration.
Having made several trips to visit Mr Trump at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Mr Orban has gone from being mostly internationally isolated on the war to now being the closest ally to the president-elect in Europe.
Speaking to The Independent, Mr Habsburg-Lothringen said: “During Donald Trump’s first presidency, Hungarian-American political relations were at their peak, with dialogue and negotiations taking centre stage in resolving conflicts that threaten world security.
“Following the decision of the American electorate a few days ago, we really have good hope that Hungarian-American political cooperation will return to its peak: we share similar views on peace, illegal immigration and the protection of families. I believe there is a better chance than ever that peace will finally return to Ukraine after almost a thousand days of war.”
The Pope recently made a visit to Hungary and has told Mr Habsburg-Lothringen that his affinity to the eastern European country came from a group of Hungarian nuns who lived in Argentina after fleeing following the Russian invasion in 1956.
Now, with their shared view of bringing an early end to the war, he believes the Pope will support a peace deal opposed by all the other Western allies in Nato.
