MOSCOW, December 15. /TASS/. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov pointed out that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz asking Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to leave during the vote on Ukraine is a "unique practice."
"This is, perhaps, an EU matter - [I mean] Hungary's relations with the European Commission. It's not our business, but we read with great interest various media reports about, let's say, the practice of making various decisions in the EU, waiting for someone to go out for coffee and so on, in order to push through some decisions while that someone is gone. If this is true, it is a unique practice," the spokesman said.
Commenting on Orban's categorical position on Ukraine's accession to the EU, Peskov pointed out that "Hungary is a sovereign country, Hungary has its own interests, and Hungary, unlike many European countries, defends its interests very firmly." He added that Moscow was impressed by this resoluteness. "I would like to recall the president's words from yesterday that you should not think that Hungary and a number of other countries that are defending their interests are pro-Russian. They are not pro-Russian at all. They are simply aware and independent enough to defend their own interests," the Kremlin spokesman said.
Earlier, the Politico newspaper reported that Chancellor Scholz suggested at Thursday's EU summit that Orban go out for coffee while the other EU leaders discuss a plan to start negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the association. According to a European diplomat, Scholz used "an old trick" from his days as deputy chairman of the youth wing of the German Social Democratic Party. As the chancellor himself pointed out, as a result, European leaders were able to decide to begin negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU, leaving the Hungarian prime minister out of this decision. The newspaper said that hours earlier, the Hungarian leader had defended his position on the issue during a breakfast meeting with Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, European Council President Charles Michel, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. After three hours of discussions with other European representatives at the EU summit, Orban decided to leave the meeting room, saying that "Hungary does not want to take part in this bad decision and therefore abstains today."