Hungary does not want NATO to become an “anti-China” bloc and will not support that happening, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Thursday (11).
In comments on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Washington, he also said Ukraine’s admission to the military alliance would weaken the group’s unity.
A draft communiqué from the summit described China as a key enabler of Russia’s war effort in Ukraine and said Beijing continued to pose systemic challenges to Europe and its security. China said the communiqué was biased and “sowed discord”.
“NATO is a defense alliance… we cannot organize it into an anti-China bloc,” Szijjarto told Hungarian state television in response to a question about NATO’s alliance-building efforts in the Indo-Pacific.
China is an important trade and investment partner for Hungary. Other EU member states are seeking to become less dependent on Beijing.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday to discuss a potential peace deal with Ukraine, following visits to Kiev and Moscow.
His dealings with Russian President Vladimir Putin have angered some EU leaders as the bloc seeks to avoid high-level contacts with Moscow over the war in Ukraine.
At the NATO summit, leaders pledged their support for Ukraine and the draft communiqué reiterated support for Ukraine on its path to membership in the Alliance.
“Ukraine’s admission would not strengthen but weaken the unity alliance, as there are completely divergent views on its membership,” Szijjarto said.
“Ukraine’s accession to NATO would also not strengthen the defense character of the alliance because, in practice, it would create a risk of open conflict between Russia and NATO.”
Source: CNN Brasil

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