BUDAPEST, July 26./TASS/. A demonstration in support of a peaceful settlement in Ukraine and against Western countries sending weapons to Kiev was held in Budapest on Wednesday. It was organized by the Forum for Peace civil movement, a coalition of ten political and social organizations, initiated by the Hungarian Community for Peace.
According to TASS estimates, about 200 people got together during rush hour at one of the busiest places in the Hungarian capital city, Nyugati Square. Demonstrators were carrying signs that read "We want peace" and "Exiting NATO." Many of the passers-by returning home from work stopped to listen to speeches from NGO leaders calling for the warfare in Ukraine to be prevented from expanding and against Hungary being dragged into it.
The demonstration passed an appeal to the citizens and government of the country on behalf of the Forum for Peace. In reply to a question from TASS about whether the document will be referred to the office of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the president of the Hungarian Community for Peace, Endre Simo, said "They already have it."
Forum’s appeal
The document says that peace in Hungary "is threatened" since "our Western allies, allied with domestic political and military circles, want to force us into a war on the side of Ukraine, against Russia." "They want us to give up our pro-peace policy, send weapons and soldiers to Ukraine, and go to war with Russia again, this time together with NATO," the document stresses.
The protesters "want to give voice to the anti-war will of the sane-minded majority" and stop "those who put profit before the lives of others, and are ready to sacrifice the peace of the whole world on the altar of their selfish goals of power."
"Let us declare that the Hungarian people do not wish to make sacrifices for the power of the depraved Kiev clique that oppresses the people and uses its compatriots as cannon fodder, nor for those who want to keep it in power," says the appeal.
It expresses support for the Hungarian government's peace efforts, but urges it to take a more uncompromising and consistent stance towards Russia. "Let the government decide whether it considers Russia to be an aggressor, or whether it recognizes the legitimacy of its security demands and pursues an active policy of neutrality for reconciliation with Russia," the document reads.
Hungary should stop financial support for Ukraine, instead using these funds to help the Hungarian people who themselves are facing difficulties due to the armed conflict in a neighboring country and EU sanctions against Russia.
"We are not interested in confrontation, but in good relations with both East and West. Here, in the heart of Europe, on the path of historical wars, peaceful cooperation with the West, with which we conduct 80% of our trade, and with Russia, which satisfies 80% of our energy needs, is a vital issue for us. All our interests are linked to peace and progress," says the document translated into English.