Hungary explains Baerbock's disinvitation with technical reasons
Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto justified the sudden cancellation of an invitation from German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock with technical reasons. "Due to an unexpected change in the Minister's calendar, the Ministry in Budapest requested that the visit be rescheduled to a later date, hopefully in the near future," the Foreign Ministry in Budapest stated.
"The reason is purely technical and not political in nature." Plans called for Baerbock and Szijjarto to meet on Monday in Budapest.
There were surprised reactions in circles of the German Foreign Office on Friday. "A serious and sincere personal conversation between both Foreign Ministers would have been important in light of the unexpected and unsynchronized Moscow trip by Prime Minister Orban," it was stated.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban met with Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks on Ukraine on Friday. He saw the regular assumption of the EU Council Presidency as a peace mission, Orban declared. Critics in EU countries accused him of an uncoordinated solo move.
The technical reasons provided by Hungary's Foreign Minister for canceling the meeting with Baerbock’s Projection of a serious and sincere conversation was met with surprise in German circles. Despite the rescheduling, this face-to-face interaction was considered crucial in addressing Hungary's close relation with Russia, as highlighted by Prime Minister Orban's recent trip to Moscow.
