Hungary’s Viktor Orban bypasses a previously scheduled meeting with the Romanian president, opting instead to meet with the pro-Russian prime minister of Georgia

On his Wednesday visit to Hungary, President Klaus Iohannis has scheduled a meeting with President Katalin Novák, but not with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the de facto leader of the neighboring country. Why? Viktor Orban chose to leave the country precisely during Iohannis’s visit, even though the Romanian president’s trip had been planned for several months.

Subsequently, Viktor Orban embarked on a trip to Georgia on Tuesday for a meeting between the two countries’ governments, according to his official website. He met with the pro-Russian Prime Minister, Irakli Garibashvili, in Tbilisi.

Orban’s departure from Budapest is reportedly due to the Hungarian prime minister’s reluctance to align with the pro-European and pro-Ukraine messages of President Iohannis, official sources told G4Media.

Viktor Orban stands as Vladimir Putin’s sole ally within the EU and NATO. He is perceived as Russia’s Trojan horse in both organizations and has obstructed several EU decisions regarding sanctions imposed on Russia.

Furthermore, Viktor Orban has made revisionist remarks in Tușnad in this year and on other occasions, showcasing the map of Greater Hungary, prompting protest reactions from Romania, Slovakia, and Croatia.

During his Budapest visit, President Klaus Iohannis is set to meet with President Katalin Novák at the Presidential Palace and lay wreaths at the Unknown Soldier Monument in Heroes’ Square, as well as at plot 144 for Romanian soldiers in the central Rakoskeresztur Cemetery.

This marks the first visit by a Romanian president to Budapest in 14 years. The previous official visit to Budapest was made by President Traian Băsescu.