Hungary Turns Page: New PM Magyar’s Praise Of Trump, Openness To Talks With Putin After Orban’s Exit

3 min readApr 14, 2026 12:38 AM IST

The 16-year tenure of Viktor Orbán came to an end on Sunday after Péter Magyar of the Tisza party successfully unseated Hungary’s longtime prime minister in a landslide election victory.

On Monday, Magyar said that if Russian President Vladimir Putin were to call him, he would take the call and urge him to end the war in Ukraine. Hungary’s outgoing prime minister had previously commented on US President Donald Trump, who, along with his senior officials, publicly endorsed Orbán and even appeared at his campaign rallies.

The news of Orbán’s ouster and Magyar’s victory in Hungary’s polls has been welcomed by several European countries, including Poland, France, Germany, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Orbán had often been criticized by his European partners for repeatedly using Hungary’s veto power to block EU decisions, NBC News reported.

Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party, waves the Hungarian flag following the announcement of the partial results of the parliamentary election, in Budapest, Hungary. (AP Photo)

What has Hungary’s new PM Magyar said about Trump?

Hungary’s new leader, Péter Magyar, has made specific remarks about Trump, praising the US president while criticizing Viktor Orbán, who served as prime minister continuously from 2010.

What is the difference between Donald Trump @POTUS and Viktor Orbán?
Donald Trump has never been afraid to stand up for open, straightforward debates with his political opponents. @PM_ViktorOrban hasn’t dared to do this for 20 years.
Donald Trump has never represented foreign…
— Magyar Péter (Ne féljetek) (@magyarpeterMP) November 7, 2025

In a post on X dated November 8 last year, Magyar wrote that Trump “has never been afraid to stand up for open, straightforward debates with his political opponents,” adding that Orbán “hasn’t dared to do this for 20 years.”

Magyar also said that Trump never represented “foreign interests” and that the Republican leader’s decisions benefited American companies. The prime minister-designate referenced Trump’s efforts to push for a truce between Russia and Ukraine, who have been at war since February 2022 when Moscow invaded Kyiv.

“Trump really wants to force Russian President Vladimir Putin to make peace,” Magyar said.

What did Hungary’s new PM Magyar say about Putin?

Hungarian election winner Péter Magyar stated on Monday that if he were to interact with Russian President Putin, he would urge him to end the war in Ukraine.

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In his first press briefing after Sunday’s landslide victory, Magyar said: “If Vladimir Putin calls, I’ll pick up the phone. If we did talk, I could tell him that it would be nice to end the killing after four years and end the war.”

“It would probably be a short phone conversation, and I don’t think he would end the war on my advice,” Magyar added. The Tisza party leader’s comments were likely welcomed by many across the European Union, AP reported.

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