Secretary of State Marco Rubio voiced strong support for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Orbán is seeking a fifth term as leader in the April election.
"I'm going to be very blunt with you. The prime minister and the President have a very, very close personal relationship and working relationship," Rubio said in a press conference with Orbán on Monday.
"I think it has been incredibly beneficial to the relationship between our two countries, and it’s important to understand how important the relations between leaders are to the relations between countries." He continued, "President Trump is deeply committed to your success."
While Orbán has a strong relationship with President Donald Trump, he has been a roadblock to European leaders' efforts to increase Western support for Ukraine. Hungary has used its position in NATO and the EU to slow or limit aid to Ukraine and the economic war against Russia.
Some EU members were attempting to use frozen Russian assets as collateral for a massive loan to Ukraine. Orbán was key to preventing the EU from moving forward with the loan.
Budapest has repeatedly expressed displeasure with Kiev over Ukraine's disabling of the Russian pipeline that carries oil to Hungary. Hungary is now requesting that Croatia allow Russian oil transit to bypass Ukraine.
President Donald Trump has been willing to use his leverage to influence elections around the globe. In Argentina, he conditions a $20 billion assistance package on President Javier Milei’s party winning elections. The President has also voiced strong support or opposition to candidates in Honduras and Iraq.
Rubio told Orbán that Hungary could receive similar support as Argentina.
"If you have financial struggles, if you face things that are impediments to growth, if you face things that threaten the stability of your country, I know that President Trump would be very interested because of your relationship with him and because of the importance of this country to us," the Secretary of State said.
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