Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s thinly veiled threat to send soldiers to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s home address has elicited a reaction from a variety of European politicians, including Alternative for Germany (AfD) co-leader Alice Weidel and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who both condemned Zelensky’s statement.
Zelensky’s threatening statement prompted outrage from the Hungarian government yesterday, with the Ukrainian leader stating: “We hope that not a single person in the European Union will block the 90 billion, or the first tranche of the 90 billion [euros], and that the Ukrainian soldiers will have weapons,” Zelensky said during the briefing.
He then added a remark that Hungarian officials interpreted as a threat directed at Orbán.
“Otherwise, we will give this person’s address to our armed forces, and then they will call him and speak to him in their own language,” Zelensky said.
In response, Weidel wrote on X: “Zelensky—the premium partner of the German federal government and the EU—openly threatens the head of state of Hungary, Viktor Orbán, with a ‘visit’ from his soldiers to Orbán’s private address. A dam has burst.”
Selensky – der Premiumpartner der deutschen Bundesregierung und der EU – droht dem Staatsoberhaupt Ungarns Viktor Orban offen mit dem „Besuch“ seiner Soldaten an Orbans Privatadresse. Ein Dammbruch. https://t.co/DnmJY2zct2
— Alice Weidel (@Alice_Weidel) March 6, 2026In turn, Slovak leader Fico also addressed the threat, stating: “About five minutes ago I saw a shocking video of the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. A video in which he directly threatens the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán, because the Hungarian government is currently blocking a 90 billion euro military loan for Ukraine.”
He referred to this as “blackmailing behavior” from Zelensky and stated that it was “unacceptable to think we are his servants.” He said that regardless of the war in Ukraine, the threat against Orbán is something “we all must reject.”
He called on the leaders of the European Union, directly referencing Ursula von der Leyen, to “distance themselves from these outrageous blackmailing statements” from Zelensky.
REACTION OF THE PRIME MINISTER OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC, ROBERT FICO, TO THE BLACKMAILING BEHAVIOR OF UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY
I express full solidarity with the Prime Minister of Hungary, @PM_ViktorOrban. If the Ukrainian president continues like this, it may happen that… pic.twitter.com/NLKfyZPZ1j
— Robert Fico 🇸🇰 (@RobertFicoSVK) March 5, 2026Orbán also responded to the threat of violence, stating: “President @ZelenskyyUa’s threats are not about me. He is threatening Hungary. Unfortunately for him, he cannot stop me from protecting Hungarian families.”
President @ZelenskyyUa's threats are not about me. He is threatening Hungary.
Unfortunately for him, he cannot stop me from protecting Hungarian families. 🇭🇺🇭🇺🇭🇺 pic.twitter.com/7bPSeBjexn
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) March 5, 2026Zelensky’s threat has only escalated tensions between the two governments amid a widening dispute over energy supplies and military funding right before national elections in Hungary.
Speaking about the state of Ukraine’s armed forces on Thursday, Zelensky expressed frustration to a Ukrainian parliamentary committee that Hungary has blocked a proposed €90 billion joint European loan intended to finance weapons for Ukraine. Budapest has withheld support for the measure amid an ongoing dispute triggered by the shutdown of the Druzhba, or Friendship, oil pipeline that carries Russian crude oil through Ukraine to Hungary and Slovakia.
Hungarian newspaper Magyar Nemzet argued that the phrase “speak to him in their own language” strongly implies the use of force. The Ukrainian expression Zelensky used — спілкуватися своєю мовою — is widely understood as a colloquial phrase suggesting a harsher response rather than diplomatic dialogue.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó also responded to Zelensky’s comment, saying: “It goes beyond all boundaries that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has practically threatened Prime Minister Viktor Orbán with death.”
“This is a completely new situation in Europe, where the president of a European country is threatening the prime minister of a NATO and EU member state with murder,” he added.
