Desperate for Reelection, Hungary’s Orban Latches on to War Fears

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Hungary and Slovakia haven’t called out Moscow for damaging the pipeline, which passes through Ukraine. 

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Instead, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto alleged Ukraine is dragging out repairs for political reasons, which his Ukrainian counterpart denied.

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Slovakian Threat 

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Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico sought to step up the pressure on Saturday, threatening to ask his country’s state grid operator to halt emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine on Monday if oil via the Druzhba pipeline doesn’t resume. 

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Ukraine is suffering significant power cutoffs as Russian airstrikes focus on energy infrastructure, depriving millions of civilians of heating, water and electricity in freezing temperatures.

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The Foreign Ministry in Kyiv rejected “the ultimatums and blackmail” by Hungary and Slovakia over energy supplies, according to a statement on its website, which said Ukraine is considering activating an early warning mechanism under its EU association agreement “in light of the unfounded and irresponsible threats coming from Budapest and Bratislava.”

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“Ukraine is in constant contact with representatives of the European Commission regarding the damage to Ukrainian energy infrastructure caused by daily Russian strikes,” the ministry said. “Security and stabilization repair work continues amid daily threats of new missile attacks.”

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Hungary has also stepped up efforts to obstruct EU support to Kyiv, according to people familiar with the matter. On Friday, Budapest delayed approval for a budget measure needed to implement the €90 billion ($106 billion) loan for Ukraine, the people said. 

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With less than 60 days before the vote, Fidesz has re-floated the anti-war messaging, casting Tisza as a tool of warmongering decision-makers in Kyiv and Brussels. The imagery, which dovetails with Kremlin talking points, is being blared from billboards and smartphone screens across the country. 

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Another billboard image features Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holding an expectant hand out for cash. He’s flanked by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Manfred Weber, leader of the European Parliament’s conservative group. The latter two, both Germans, are cast as hired muscle. 

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Throughout the day, state television carries a flashing reminder to sign a petition against sending money to Ukraine. News websites drive home the message with insistent pop-up screens. 

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The information campaign is only one element in an eventful campaign. President Donald Trump has strongly endorsed Orban, while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Budapest on Monday. Last week, Magyar sought to preempt the release of a tape of him having sex with his former partner, calling it a “Russia-style” blackmail attempt. 

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But polls have changed little since the start of the year, suggesting the campaign may struggle to counterbalance the impact of voter disillusionment at the poor state of public services. 

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Some 23% of Hungarians believed the country would enter the war if Tisza wins, while 54% said it wouldn’t, according to a survey taken in late January published on Feb. 19 by the 21 Kutatokozpont agency. 

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Either way, the campaign’s war imagery stokes memories in an eastern European nation that saw its share of 20th-century violence. Hungarian schoolchildren learn about the devastation suffered by the military at the hands of the Red Army in World War II, when forces were sent deep into the Soviet Union on behalf of Nazi Germany. 

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Orban made use of those sensibilities in a speech last weekend. 

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“We Hungarians know what a war over there is like,” he said. “Hungarian boys died for foreign goals at the Don River, following foreign orders on foreign land. Once was enough.” 

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—With assistance from Alberto Nardelli and Daryna Krasnolutska.

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(Updates with Fico threat, Ukraine response starting in 15th paragraph.)

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