MOSCOW, April 13. /TASS/. In an interview with Vesti journalist Pavel Zarubin, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov refrained from dwelling on the topic whether Hungary will remain an "island of rationality" in the European Union now that the opposition has come to power in that country.
In a commentary to Life journalist Alexander Yunashev, he noted that the Russian side doesn’t plan to congratulate the leader of Hungary’s opposition party Tisza, Peter Magyar, on his party’s victory at the parliamentary elections because of official Budapest’s aupport for the anti-Russian sanctions.
TASS has summed up key statement by the Kremlin spokesman.
Elections in Hungary
Russia will monitor the general policy of Hungary’s new leadership: "We are open to dialogue [with Hungary]. We are open to building good, mutually beneficial relations. We will continue to monitor the new leadership's general policy. It is difficult to say at this point whether it will remain pragmatic or become politicized."
"We don't know what the Hungarian voice will be like. Obviously, the new leadership will be somehow defending Hungary's interests. Well, if they will defend Hungary's interests, there will be some kind of logic. A logic that takes into account the current realities and so on. So, let's wait and see, let's not get ahead of ourselves."
The Russian side doesn’t plan to congratulate Tisza party leader Peter Magyar on the victory at the parliamentary elections, taking into account official Budapest’s support for the anti-Russian sanctions: "We don’t send any congratulations to unfriendly countries. And Hungary is an unfriendly country, it supports sanctions against us."
Relations with EU
Russia’s relations with the European Union cannot get worse than they are now that the opposition has come to power in Hungary: "They [relations] can't get any worse. There's no going lower."
Conflict in the Middle East
The conflict in the Middle East is far from being resolved: "Bearing in mind that the parties failed to reach an agreement, as far as we understand, the potential for a conflict [in the Middle East] remains. We hear certain statements from Washington regarding the blockade of the Iranian coast. But so far, we cannot say what this will lead to."
What is happening in the region will have adverse consequences internationally across various spheres: "The situation is far from being resolved. Hopefully, it will not escalate into an armed confrontation again."