The world has never been so close to a local war turning into a world war, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said regarding the Ukraine war, when he spoke to Hungary's public radio on Friday morning.

The Hungarian premier emphasized, that

the leaders of the West are in a war psychosis. They are delivering speeches urging to win the war, which would result in even more casualties. They are also sending increasingly dangerous weapons to Ukraine.

Instead of an unanimous support for peace, international public opinion has been divided: the Turks, the Arabs, the Chinese or the Africans are all urging a ceasefire and peace talks, he pointed out.

It is important for Hungary to have military strength and to be on the side of peace at the same time, PM Orban emphasized, adding that countries loved by their citizens are usually the ones that can defend themselves. These people’s first thought revolves around not how to flee, but rather how to defend their country from harm, he said.

We must create a capability in which, in times of trouble, everyone knows what to do, and we also need people who will defend their homeland with arms, if necessary, he stressed.

Therefore, it is important for the military to be effective. To that end, its size should be increased, along with the soldiers’ dedication to their homeland and their profession, and their level of training. They must be equipped with modern weapons.

While we are on the side of peace, Hungary must not be defenceless,

Mr Orban said.

In Hungary, „the Left is pro-war.” This is something that we expect so long as „they are funded from abroad,” but due to the distribution of seats in parliament, „the weight and impact of the pro-peace camp on Hungary’s life is much bigger,” PM Orban said.

Talking about the economy, he explained that the quickest way to decrease inflation would be to lift the sanctions imposed because of the Russia-Ukraine war. While Hungary could not abolish the sanctions policy, it would keep vetoing sanctions that would cause the most direct damage to the Hungarian economy, he added.

If the sanctions were lifted tomorrow morning, inflation would immediately, in one step, at least halve, and start to return to the 2-3 per cent range, PM Orban opined.

He recalled that there have been ten sanctions packages so far, which represent „ten bloody battles” in political terms, when Hungarian interests had to be protected and, under the leadership of the foreign minister, these battles were „successfully won.”

The government has introduced twenty measures that will bring inflation below ten per cent, to single digits, by the end of the year, by 31 December, PM Orban confirmed. These decisions, which are aimed at protecting families, pensioners, small and medium-sized enterprises, are widely accepted and there is also a consensus that they will deliver results. The question is at what pace, but certainly by the end of the year, Mr Orban said.

There’s an unbridgeable gap between Brussels and Hungary on the so-called gender issue, he said, adding however that „since we will not give in, Brussels will have to.”

Parents rightfully expect the government to provide help in protecting children, and to ensure that parenting remains the responsibility of parents and that schools do not promote a way of life that parents have never approved or accepted, he said.

Gender identity falls into this category, because – according to Hungary’s position – propaganda that makes kids uncertain about their identity has no place in schools. Yet, Brussels wants to resume it, which would result in the relaxation of child protection norms, and then we would suddenly experience a spike in the number of paedophile crimes in Hungary, Mr Orban said.