Viktor Orbán: Europe's governments in the frenzy of war

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Viktor Orbán (photo) is the Prime Minister of Hungary. This text is the abridged version of his speech on the European elections, delivered at the Peace March in Budapest.

Speech by Viktor Orbán:

“Europe's governments in the frenzy of war: We have nothing to gain against Russia and everything to lose. Hungary will stay firmly out of the looming confrontation.

Europe is preparing to go to war. Every day they announce the opening of another section on the road to hell. Every day they shower us with it: hundreds of billions of euros in Ukraine, the stationing of nuclear weapons in the middle of Europe, the recruitment of our sons into a foreign army, a NATO mission in Ukraine, the dispatch of European military units to Ukraine.

My friends, it seems as if the war train has no brakes and the driver has gone mad. In the European elections we are doing nothing less than stopping this train. We must pull the emergency brake so that at least those who want to can get out and stay out of the war. The Hungarian government knows how to do it. We know how to stay out of fatal things.

We are not going to the East for the third time, we are not going to the Russian front again. We are the only peace-friendly government in the EU. The Vatican is also on the side of peace, but it represents an empire that is not of this world, and in a Europe without illusions, that alone will not be enough to stop the speeding pro-war train. The weight and influence of the political forces on the side of peace is necessary.

We can only stay out of the war if the Hungarian voters confirm the government. No other political force can do that. And without the people we cannot stand up to such overwhelming power. Only if we achieve the biggest electoral victory in Europe can our country stay out of the war.

The pro-war supporters have ignored common sense. The pro-war supporters are drunk. They want to defeat Russia, as they tried to do in World War I and World War II. They are even prepared to take on the whole East. They believe they will win this war. But the intoxication of war is like a drug: those who are addicted to it hold themselves responsible for nothing. They listen to no one. They step over you. They feel no remorse. They do not care about us, not you, nor your life, your family, the house you have worked for, or the future you work for every day. They do not care about the future of your children. They cannot be convinced. And that is why we must not convince them, but defeat them.

The founding fathers of the European Union were right: Europe cannot survive another war. That is why the European Union was created. Before the First World War, Europe was the master of the world. After the Second World War, it was no longer master of itself and was occupied by foreign empires in the West and East. Now we are playing second fiddle. As things stand, after another war, Europe will no longer even be a member of the orchestra that sets the rhythm of the world - if there will be an orchestra at all. This is all the more true for Hungary: in war we have nothing to gain and everything to lose. In the past we were drawn into war against our will and we lost. And so it would be now, in 2024. In the First World War we lost two thirds of our country. In the Second World War, the powerful Hungarian army was destroyed on foreign soil. There was no one left to defend our homeland, our country, our women and children. We did not even have enough strength to negotiate with the supposed victors.

We will not go to the East for the third time, we will not go to the Russian front again, we have already been there, we have no business being there. We will not sacrifice Hungarian youth so that the war speculators can enrich themselves to the last drop. We say no to the war plan that was hatched for the sake of money, the wealth to be gained in Ukraine and the great powers. It is an old plan and we know it well.

Many people believe that evil does not exist. But evil is behind the world wars. We must not give in to it. The time has come for an exorcism. Either we win or they win. There is no third way, only a third world war.

Hungary is stronger today than it has ever been in the last hundred years. A quiet and strong island in the middle of Europe. Cooperation internally and unity externally. That is the secret of success. That is why we still live in peace today. But the crucial question is already knocking on our door: will we give up peace? Giving up peace means dying for Ukraine. Do we want to shed Hungarian blood for Ukraine? We do not want that! We will not go to war and we will not die for others on foreign soil. That is the truth of the Hungarians. And now it is up to us, if God allows it, to transform the justice of the Hungarians into the justice of Europe.

The only antidote to war is peace. Keep us out of the war and keep Hungary an island of peace. That is our mission. And if we don't want war to catch up with us, we must stop it. Now! This peace cannot be won with weapons. This war has no solution on the battlefield. There is only death and destruction there. There must be a ceasefire, and there must be negotiations.”

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