Hungary’s Magyar says he would urge Putin to end Ukraine war if called

Hungary’s prime minister-elect Péter Magyar has said he would answer the phone if Russian President Vladimir Putin contacted him and would urge him to stop the war in Ukraine, following a decisive election victory that ended Viktor Orbán’s 16 years in power.

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Magyar, leader of the Tisza party, made the remarks during a lengthy press conference on Monday, a day after his movement secured a sweeping parliamentary majority in Hungary’s national election.

While he said he had already spoken with several European leaders following the vote, Magyar indicated he had no plans to initiate contact with Putin or with U.S. President Donald Trump.

“If Vladimir Putin calls I’ll pick up the phone,” he told reporters. But he added he did not expect such a call to happen. If it did, he said he would urge the Russian leader “to put an end to the killing and end this war.”

New leadership after Orbán era

Magyar’s victory represents a dramatic political shift in Hungary, where Orbán and his Fidesz party had governed continuously since 2010.

Preliminary results show Tisza winning 136 seats in parliament, slightly lower than earlier projections but still enough to secure a two-thirds “supermajority”, allowing the party to amend the constitution.

Around 400,000 votes remained to be counted, though Magyar said he believed his party could still gain additional seats.

Speaking to journalists, the 45-year-old politician described the election outcome as more than a routine change of government.

“Voters did not only vote for a change of government, but for a complete regime change,” he said.

Magyar, a former member of Orbán’s Fidesz party, launched his movement on a platform focused on tackling corruption and dismantling what he described as entrenched patronage networks in government.

Rebuilding ties with Europe

Following his victory, Magyar said he had already spoken with ten European leaders. Among them was European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who said Hungary had “chosen Europe.”

Magyar emphasised that Hungary’s future lay firmly within the European Union and said it was in the country’s interest to join the eurozone.

He also outlined plans for early diplomatic visits to Poland, Austria and Germany, highlighting Hungary’s ties with those countries.

Under Orbán, relations with the EU had often been strained, with Budapest frequently clashing with Brussels over issues ranging from rule-of-law concerns to foreign policy.

Orbán’s government was also widely regarded as maintaining unusually close ties with Moscow compared with most EU states.

Ukraine war and relations with Russia

Magyar struck a markedly different tone on the war in Ukraine from his predecessor.

During the election campaign, Orbán blamed the EU and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for prolonging the conflict. His government also blocked a €90bn EU loan to support Kyiv last month, drawing criticism from European partners.

Magyar said Hungarians broadly recognised that Ukraine was the victim of Russia’s invasion.

“The war makes no sense from a Russian perspective either,” he said, pointing to the heavy casualties suffered by Russian forces and the impact on Russian families.

Even so, he acknowledged that any conversation with Putin would likely have little effect.

“It would probably be a short phone call,” he said, adding he did not believe the Russian leader would end the war based on his advice.

Questions over outgoing government

Magyar also used the press conference to raise allegations concerning the departing administration.

He said he had received information suggesting outgoing Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó was destroying confidential documents related to sanctions against Russia inside the foreign ministry building on Monday.

There was no immediate comment from the ministry.

Orbán’s government had faced scrutiny in recent months over its contacts with Moscow. Reports previously emerged that Szijjártó had shared information with Russian officials before and after EU meetings on sanctions.

In one leaked exchange, he was said to have told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov: “I am at your service.” The disclosure prompted Orbán to order an investigation into possible wiretapping.

Magyar’s government is expected to take office in the coming weeks, marking the beginning of a new political chapter for Hungary.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 14 April 2026