US Vice President J.D. Vance has traveled to Hungary to support the re-election campaign of nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who is facing the most contested election of his career, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
During the two-day visit, just days before the April 12 parliamentary vote, Vance will meet with Orban and attend a campaign event with him, Hungarian government sources said.
“I look forward to meeting with my good friend Viktor and talking about various topics related to U.S.-Hungary relations,” Vance told journalists before departing Washington, adding that relations with Europe and Ukraine would be discussed. The unusual personal gesture of support for Orban by a senior US official is the latest example of President Donald Trump's efforts to shore up like-minded right-wing leaders, including in Argentina and Japan. Opinion polls ahead of the Hungarian election show that Orban, whom Trump has already publicly endorsed and praised as a "really strong and powerful leader", and his Fidesz party face their toughest vote since he returned to power in 2010. Most independent polls have them trailing the center-right Tisza party, led by Peter Magyar. Orban's rule of the country as an "illiberal democracy" reflects key themes for the US in the Trump era - tough anti-immigration policies, contempt for liberal norms, hostility to global institutions and attacks on the media, universities and non-profits. He was the first European leader to endorse Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign.
“J.D. Vance's visit is not routine diplomacy, but a clear endorsement of Viktor Orbán ahead of the toughest election of his life,” said Asli Aydintasbas, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank. ”For the Trump administration, Orbán is not just a conservative friend, but a central figure in the effort to establish an illiberal bloc in Europe. "If Orban falls, the movement will suffer," she added.
However, political analysts say that the American support for the Hungarian prime minister, including Vance's visit, may not be enough to sway voters, as domestic issues such as the cost of living dominate the campaign themes.