‘Reality has triumphed’, says Orbán about Trump victory

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While Donald Trumpʼs victory has reportedly been followed by a wave of hate crime attacks against minorities across the U.S., Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán trusts the world is becoming “a better place with Trump”. The PM commented on the results of the U.S. Presidential election this morning, during his regular biweekly interview to state-owned Kossuth radio. Since Trump’s victory was announced, Orbán has praised the President-elect several times. 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán this morning in the radio. (Photo: MTI/Tibor Illyés)

According to Orbán “we have just stepped over the doorstep of a new era; Brexit was the knocking on the door, and the result of the U.S. elections was stepping in, reality has triumphed.” Orbán was one of the first leaders to congratulate Trump on his victory, once it had become certain.  

Trump’s unexpected if tight triumph has raised concerns in the United States, and around the world, according to reports. “The campaign and governance, of course, are two different matters, and many issues have not yet been decided on, as the new President is being inaugurated in January only, though Hungary has its connections,” Orbán said, according to news portal index.hu.

Commenting on the possible progress on U.S.-Russian relations, Orbán (who is himself nurturing a close relationship with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, for which the Hungarian leader has received quite a bit of international criticism), said that there could be improvements between the two powers, though “they will not happen from one day to another”.

According to Orbán, with the election of Trump, European security will change. “The traditional Anglo-Saxon world alliance will stay strong, but European security will change, as Trump has made it clear that he is not willing to keep paying the bills, so we will have to do more,” Orbán was reported as saying, presumably referring to Trump’s promises during his campaign to cut the financing of NATO operations, as he believes the U.S. is spending too much on the security of other countries.

Having just arrived back from the United Kingdom and a meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May, Orbán once again stressed that the U.K. leaving the EU is a “loss for Hungary, as our points of view have been close to each other in many matters”.

He tagged the meeting with May as a success, saying that it seems the situation of Hungarians already living and working in the EU cannot deteriorate, though the case of those who would arriving there in the future is, as yet, unclear.

Orbán stressed that U.K.-Hungary relations are especially important. He said approximately 90,000-95,000 Hungarians work in the U.K. and another 40,000-45,000 are employed by British companies operating in Hungary, though he hopes more Hungarians will be coming home, as the country “is becoming a better place by day”.

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