Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of Hungary travelled to Vatican City to attend a holy mass by Pope Francis I on Wednesday, 4 December. After the mass, Pope Francis hosted the Prime Minister for an audience.
PM Orbán posted to his social media about the meeting, with the caption ‘The peace mission continues’.
He also added: ‘I came to His Holiness because we have to seize the opportunity for peace now’.
News reports, such as one by the American ABC News, have also confirmed that the Ukrainian war was the main topic of discussion between Pope Francis and PM Orbán, with a special focus on humanitarian efforts in the war-torn region and the promotion of peace.
Pope Francis has been among the few world leaders to consistently call for a negotiated peace in the Russo-Ukrainian war, along with PM Orbán. That does not mean the two leaders agree on all major issues, however. For example, in the book ‘Hope Never Disappoints: Pilgrims Towards a Better World’ by Hernan Reyes Alcaide, which is based on a series of interviews with the Pope, he called for an investigation to determine whether Israel had committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. PM Orbán, on the other hand, is a staunch supporter of the Jewish state of Israel in the Middle Eastern war, and strongly believes it is in the moral right in its actions taken. Pope Francis and Prime Minister Orbán also hold differing views on the European migration crisis.
The Hungarian head of government also met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and Under-Secretary for Relations with States Miroslaw Wachowski of the Vatican during his recent visit as well. The Holy See has released a statement about the meeting, saying:
‘In a cordial meeting at the State Secretariat, the parties praised the solid and fruitful bilateral relations and expressed their appreciation for the commitment of the Catholic Church in Hungary to promote the development and well-being of society’.
Pope Francis first met PM Orbán in September 2021, for a brief time during the 52nd International Eucharistic Congress held in Budapest, Hungary. In April 2023, however, he spent three days in the Hungarian capital for an Apostolic Visit, during which he held talks with PM Orbán again. Meanwhile, the Hungarian Prime Minister visited His Holiness in Vatican City in April 2022. That means that the two leaders have met four times already, once every year since 2021.
The Hungarian daily Magyar Nemzet has asked Dóra Erdélyi, Senior Analyst at the Oeconomus Economic Research Foundation about these frequent visits.
‘The Vatican and Hungary have come to agree on a number of issues, and common priorities have also been discussed at these audiences in recent years. Peace, the protection and support of families, and environmental protection have been the main themes of the recent meetings between the Catholic leader and Viktor Orbán. Pope Francis has repeatedly praised Hungary,’ the expert opined on the issue.
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