peace talks | The European Conservative

Macron’s First Steps Toward Peace Talks with Putin Since 2022

TEC News / AFP February 5, 2026

The visit of the French adviser may lead to the first telephone contact between the two presidents in more than two and a half years.

The Emirati flag flutters in Abu Dhabi on January 23, 2026.

Kyiv Rejects Moscow’s Demands as Peace Talks Open in the UAE

TEC News / AFP February 4, 2026

Negotiators from Ukraine, Russia and the U.S. convene in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, but Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy grid threaten to overshadow the talks.

Vladimir Putin: “We Believe in Victory”

TEC News / AFP December 31, 2025

In his New Year’s speech, the Russian president said Russia believed it would win in Ukraine.

Macron: Europe Should Be Ready to Engage Russia if U.S.-Led Talks Fail

TEC News December 19, 2025

Speaking after the European Council summit, the French leader said Europe may need to “re-engage in a full-fledged dialogue with Russia, in full transparency with Ukraine.”

Volodymyr Zelensky in Berlin on December 15, 2025

Ukrainian Delegation On Its Way to the U.S. for Peace Talks, Zelensky Says

TEC News / AFP December 18, 2025

The Ukrainian president told reporters European leaders may also be present at the talks to be held on Friday and Saturday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s “balanced position” on Ukraine as the two leaders met in the Kremlin on Friday, November 28th for talks focused on the war, energy security, and the prospect of Budapest hosting a future U.S.–Russia summit. Putin said that Moscow appreciated Hungary’s “moderate stance.” He also thanked Orbán for being prepared to host a meeting between him and U.S. President Donald Trump in Budapest. The talks in Moscow—Orbán’s second visit since last year—underline the Hungarian leader’s unique role within the European Union. Since the beginning of the war, he has been the only EU head of government to maintain open communication channels with the Kremlin, and the only one to consistently call for peace talks rather than increased military support for Ukraine. Western European leaders and Brussels, by contrast, have preferred to fuel the war through military aid packages while failing to produce any strategy for diplomatic negotiations. Similarly to Putin, Trump, too, has welcomed Orbán’s distinct diplomatic strategy as the U.S. president is pushing his own plan for ending the war. Budapest was agreed upon as a future venue for a U.S.-Russia summit, but an agreement on Trump’s 28-point peace plan would have to be a precursor to that. While the EU is currently focusing on seizing Russian assets to use as a so-called reparations loan for Ukraine, it is simultaneously upset that it is being excluded from peace talks as Trump and Orbán make efforts to bring Moscow to the negotiating table. On Thursday, Putin said he would end his Ukraine offensive if Kyiv withdrew from territory Moscow claims as its own—otherwise his army would take it by force. Washington’s original plan would have seen Kyiv withdraw from its eastern Donetsk region and the United States de facto recognise the Donetsk, Crimea, and Lugansk regions as Russian, but Washington backtracked following criticism from Europe, and has not yet released the new version. Another central issue for Orbán in his dealings with Russia is the question of energy. “Energy supplies from Russia form the basis of Hungary’s energy supply now and will remain so in the future,” he said during the meeting, stressing that stable oil and gas deliveries were essential to keeping Hungarian energy prices the lowest in the EU. Ahead of the trip, Orbán said he had recently travelled to Washington to secure an exemption from U.S. sanctions on Russian energy companies. “We succeeded,” he announced on social media. BLOCK QUOTE Now we must take the next step, guaranteeing that deliveries to Hungary continue without interruption. This is why I am going to Russia today: to make sure Hungary’s energy supply remains secure and affordable this winter and in the year ahead. https://x.com/PM_ViktorOrban/status/1994348592996229323 His political director, Balázs Orbán, warned that Europe was “steering onto an increasingly wartime course”, cutting itself off from Russian energy while pushing for new sanctions, accelerating Ukraine’s EU accession, and risking elevating the conflict “into a broader Europe–Russia confrontation.” Hungary argues that such policies harm European competitiveness and ignore the interests of EU citizens, particularly as households across the bloc struggle with soaring energy prices.

UPDATED As the EU Pushes Sanctions, Orbán Talks Peace and Energy Cooperation in Moscow

Zoltán Kottász November 28, 2025

Vladimir Putin praised the Hungarian PM’s “balanced position” as the two leaders discussed Ukraine, energy, and a possible Budapest peace summit.

Viktor Orbán’s Washington Mission: Energy, Peace, and the Return of Realism

Javier Villamor November 7, 2025

Hungary’s insistence on defending its energy security and its right to pursue peace talks offers a model of what a more balanced and sovereign Europe could look like.

Trump at Centre of Thai-Cambodian Peace Ceremony

TEC News October 26, 2025

Claiming to have “ended eight wars in eight months,” the White House deal-making and diplomacy continues,

Fico Accuses EU of Prioritizing Politics Over Peace in Ukraine War

TEC News October 24, 2025

“Peace without ceding parts of the territories that are currently in Ukraine is not possible,” the Slovakian PM said, “the Ukrainian president knows it, the American president knows it.”

Brussels Bickers About Budapest Summit but Won’t Do Anything About It

Michael Curzon October 21, 2025

Privately, diplomats acknowledge that while they don’t like it, they have no choice but to accept Trump’s plans.

Tag: peace talks

Macron’s First Steps Toward Peace Talks with Putin Since 2022

Kyiv Rejects Moscow’s Demands as Peace Talks Open in the UAE

Vladimir Putin: “We Believe in Victory”

Macron: Europe Should Be Ready to Engage Russia if U.S.-Led Talks Fail

Ukrainian Delegation On Its Way to the U.S. for Peace Talks, Zelensky Says

UPDATED As the EU Pushes Sanctions, Orbán Talks Peace and Energy Cooperation in Moscow

Viktor Orbán’s Washington Mission: Energy, Peace, and the Return of Realism

Trump at Centre of Thai-Cambodian Peace Ceremony

Fico Accuses EU of Prioritizing Politics Over Peace in Ukraine War

Brussels Bickers About Budapest Summit but Won’t Do Anything About It

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