Hungarian Foreign Minister to attend Ukraine peace conference next weekend

During his visit to St.Petersburg, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced that he would be attending the Ukraine Peace Summit in Switzerland starting on 15 June, adding that the reason for his participation is that Hungary is on the side of peace and will take part in any event where peace is on the agenda, MTI reports.

The goal of the peace conference is to move one step closer to a ceasefire and to a long-term settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, 444 reports. The focus will be primarily on Ukraine, and Russia will not be represented, nor will China. So far, some 80 countries have confirmed their participation.

Szijjártó said that the Hungarian government regrets that both parties concerned will not be present at the conference. "We believe that if everyone were at the negotiating table, real results could be expected," he said. "This is not the case this time, but as we respect the peace efforts of the Swiss, we will participate at a foreign ministerial level," he added.

Speaking at a panel discussion on the future of the oil and gas market at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, the Foreign Minister also said that Hungary was one of the European countries most severely affected by the negative consequences of the roughly two-and-a-half year war in Ukraine in terms of energy supply.

He stressed that energy prices have skyrocketed, with the annual cost of Hungarian gas imports rising from €7 billion to €17 billion, the €10 billion difference representing six percent of the Gross Domestic Product.