At the press conference after the meeting between Hungarian PM Orbán and his North Macedonian counterpart, Hristijan Mickoski, Orbán emphasized: “We have all been living in the shadow of war for three years. And our best hope now is that war will be replaced by peace,” adding that Hungary welcomes U.S.-Russian peace negotiations.
Orbán also bemoaned those European Union member states, lamenting the fact that friends and allies have decided that the war should continue.
The issue of migration occupied a significant place in the discussions with North Macedonia. “The better they protect their own borders, the fewer migrants will attack Hungary’s southern borders. I informed the members of the North Macedonian government that we reject the European Union’s migration pact and will never accept it,” he told reporters.
On North Macedonia’s EU integration process, Orbán said the country can continue to count on Hungary’s support, calling it a “shame” that it has not yet become a member.
“So far, every enlargement has brought an improvement in competitiveness to the Union, including the accession of Hungary,” Orbán stated.
Regarding economic relations, trade turnover between North Macedonia and Hungary is continuously improving, increasing sevenfold since 2010.
“In our view, North Macedonia and Hungary belong to the same economic region, including Serbia. We believe this is a cohesive, unified economic area where cooperation represents great economic potential. The problem is that we are inside the Union and they are outside,” the Hungarian prime minister said.
Orbán explained that they must therefore rely on intergovernmental relations to promote cooperation between the two governments. “We have a very strong financial cooperation. We are also planning an intergovernmental economic agreement in the future,” he said, adding that private capital and the private economy must also play a role in this.
North Macedonian Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski highlighted that he and Orbán also discussed North Macedonia’s early accession to the European Union and he expressed his hope that this process would open again in the coming period; he also thanked Hungary for its support.
“Our goal is to build a stable, strong and developing Macedonia as a member of the European Union. Hungary’s support is very important in this process,” Mickoski said, noting the two countries also discussed bilateral cooperation in infrastructure and defense.
Orbán also took time to comment on Hungary’s improved relations with the U.S. under Donald Trump and the continuous communications between the two countries since he took office. “From now on, it is not worth attributing news value to the fact that the Hungarian prime minister spoke to the American president. This is how it usually happens when necessary. It is also not particularly newsworthy that the Hungarian foreign minister is meeting with the American secretary of state today,” he said.
“The United States is engaged in the same civilizational struggle to save the West there as Hungary is here. So the cooperation between us is not simply a cooperation based on tactical or economic interests,” he added, stating that “the progressives are on one side and the Patriots are on the other.”
Orbán also noted that he will hold talks with French President Macron in Paris tomorrow, followed by an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday.
