A senior minister from one of the UK’s Nato allies has publicly voiced opposition to efforts by Sir Keir Starmer’s “coalition of the willing” to guarantee peace in Ukraine if US president Donald Trump can broker a deal.
Hungary’s state secretary Zoltán Kovács, the mouthpiece of right-wing prime minister Viktor Orban, suggested on a trip to London that Western troops in Ukraine could be an extension of a “proxy war” against Russia.
He added that Hungary, seen as being close to Russia, would play no part in joint EU efforts.
“It’s certain that Hungary‘s position is very firm on this,” he said. “Hungary is not going to participate in any kind of supply of weapons, military cooperation with Ukraine, because we have a different mandate coming from the Hungarian people.”
Sir Keir has been carrying out lengthy negotiations to get a peacekeeping force made up from several countries – dubbed “the coalition of the willing” – stationed in Ukraine to guarantee any agreement to end the war that may emerge.
So far, the UK and France have signed up, and Germany is likely to be involved. Discussions took place last week in Kyiv to move it forward, and it is likely to be on the agenda at this week’s European Political Community in Tirana.
Sir Keir brought EU allies and Canada from Nato together in London in March to discuss Ukraine and launch his “coalition of the willing” plan, in the wake of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s fallout with Mr Trump in the White House.
The British prime minister’s plan has been to ensure that Ukraine’s security is guaranteed and the country is not invaded again. However, it has met resistance from several Nato allies, including the US.
One of the biggest obstacles behind the scenes has been Hungary, along with a group of other countries opposing the move.
Mr Orban, who is often accused of being pro-Putin, is one of Mr Trump’s closest European allies and has been influential on his foreign policy regarding Ukraine and other matters.
Mr Kovacs claimed: “Basically, you have that proxy war [that] has been conducted for two years. Nobody talks about that, but mentions Russians. This war is being conducted not only by Ukraine, but by some Western countries.”
Hungary also seems set to oppose any further sanctions against Russia because it could include energy. The minister warned that cutting off Russian energy poses “an existential problem” for his country.
He insisted his government would oppose such a move while denying accusations from critics that Hungary is “pro-Putin and anti-Ukraine”.
Downing Street rejected any suggestion that the coalition of the willing was an extension of a proxy war by the West.
A No 10 source said: “We refute that on the basis of the coalition’s sole purpose being to deliver peace across the region.”
