April 7 (Reuters) – U.S. Vice President JD Vance lashed out on Tuesday at what he called “disgraceful” interference by the European Union in an election in Hungary, as he lauded Prime Minister Viktor Orban as an ally of Donald Trump in the defence of Western civilisation.
Following is a rundown of key quotes from their joint news conference in Budapest.
VANCE ON HUNGARIAN ELECTION
“What has happened in this country, what has happened in the midst of this election campaign, is one of the worst examples of foreign election interference that I’ve ever seen or ever even read about …”
“The bureaucrats in Brussels have tried to destroy the economy of Hungary. They have tried to make Hungary less energy-independent. They have tried to drive up costs for Hungarian consumers, and they’ve done it all because they hate this guy [Orban] … “
“Part of the reason why we’re here and part of the reason why the president of the United States sent me here is because that we think the amount of interference that’s come from the bureaucracy in Brussels has been truly disgraceful.”
VANCE ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
“Viktor (Orban) has been better than anybody at helping us understand what it is the Ukrainians need and what it is that the Russians need in order to achieve peace. We’re going to keep on working on that process … “
“We’re certainly aware that there are elements within the Ukrainian intelligence services that tried to put their thumb on the scale of American elections, on Hungarian elections. This is just what they do … “
“The seeds of this conflict were actually planted well before the fighting started. And they were planted when European leaders decided that they were going to go so deep into a particular energy economy that they were going to cut themselves off from oil and natural gas that came from the East.
“That was a huge mistake then and it’s obvious that it’s a huge mistake now.”
VANCE ON IRAN WAR
“There are two pathways that this thing is ultimately going to end. First of all, the United States has largely accomplished its military objectives …”
“Pathway one is where the Iranians decide they’re going to be a normal country. They’re not going to fund terrorism anymore. They’re going to be part of the world system of commerce and exchange …”
“Option B is if the Iranians don’t come to the table and they stay committed to terrorism, to terrorising their neighbours, not just Israel, but of course their Arab neighbours too, then the economic situation, Iran, is going to continue to be very, very bad.”
ORBAN ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
“Hungary is still ready today: if the United States and the Russians believe that a peace summit between them is necessary, Budapest is still happy to host this meeting and stands ready to do so …”
“The strategy under which Europeans have so far supported the Ukrainians in this war has come to an end — it has failed. What is happening now is that suddenly everything that the Russians have has gained in value.
“And suddenly they have found themselves in a much more favorable position than ever before, and the European pro‑war, pro‑Ukraine strategy has collapsed.
“This is over; it’s just that right now we are focusing on the Hungarian elections rather than on Brussels. So I believe we will be facing a completely new situation after the Hungarian elections.”
(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
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