Orbán told a press conference after meeting Vucic that Serbia’s stability was key to that of the region, “and Serbia is stable if it has a strong, determined leadership”.

Orbán noted that earlier in the day Vucic received “the greatest Hungarian honor” from the country’s president.

Hungary and Serbia have faced similar challenges several times in the course of their history, Orbán said.

“Some leaders recognized that; others didn’t. Today, we’re celebrating the fact that Serbia has a president who did recognize this, and acted on that recognition to shape Serbian-Hungarian relations,” he said.