BUDAPEST, December 13. /TASS/. Moscow agreed to carry out a Christmas prisoner exchange with Ukraine and Kiev declined, but hope still remains, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told the Kossuth radio station.
According to Orban, he discussed the possibility of a Christmas ceasefire and a major prisoner swap between Moscow and Kiev in his December 11 phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Later, Hungary presented its initiative to Ukraine via diplomatic channels but Vladimir Zelensky rejected the idea. On the same day, Orban publicly expressed his disappointment about it.
"One of the parties agreed and the other apparently refused, but the possibility is still there," the Hungarian premier said. He pointed out that a major prisoner exchange "could make hundreds and even thousands of people happy."
According to Orban, by putting forward an initiative to declare a ceasefire and exchange prisoners of war, "Hungary did what a thousand-year-old Christian country could be expected to do." Budapest would like to stop bloodshed on the battlefield during the main Christian festival and make sure that there are "fireworks only on the festive table." The Hungarian premier noted that there was still time left before Christmas and expressed hope that the situation would change. "Let’s stop the war, which has led to nothing, for at least a few days," he added.
Hungary’s role
With Hungary holding the European Union presidency for the past six months, Orban has held a number of meetings and phone calls with other leaders, seeking to help resolve the conflict in Ukraine. In particular, he traveled to Moscow and Kiev in July, but, as he revealed later, failed to convince either Putin or Zelensky of the need to declare a ceasefire to create conditions for negotiations.
However, Orban’s December 11 phone conversation with the Russian leader did produce results. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Orban had proposed a Christmas ceasefire but Kiev rejected the idea. Moscow, however, promptly responded to Orban’s initiative, with the Federal Security Service sending proposals for a potential prisoner swap to the Hungarian embassy right after the two leaders’ call. The Kremlin spokesman stated that Russia supported the Hungarian premier’s efforts aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the conflict in Ukraine and resolving humanitarian issues related to prisoner exchanges.
After Zelensky rejected Hungary’s proposal for a Christmas ceasefire, Orban said: "We did everything we could." However, despite all difficulties, the Hungarian government is committed to continuing its peace mission. Budapest pins its hopes for resolving the Ukraine conflict on US President-elect Donald Trump, who has announced plans to address the issue after he assumes office on January 20.