Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s recent trips to Moscow and Beijing had one thing in common: They blindsided his country’s Western allies.
European Union and NATO partners woke up on Monday to learn that Orban had paid a visit to President Xi Jinping in China. That followed a surprise meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, which caught out countries working to present a united front on Ukraine.
EU leaders sought to distance themselves from Orban’s visit to Moscow and underscored that he wasn’t representing the bloc when he said he was working to open up lines of communication to bring peace to Ukraine.