Authored by Kimberley Hayek via The Epoch Times,
U.S Vice President JD Vance arrived in Budapest on April 7 for a two-day visit aimed at bolstering Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s campaign, ahead of Hungary’s parliamentary elections on April 12.
Vance and his wife, Usha Vance, were greeted at the Budapest airport by Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.
The two men greeted one another warmly, and Szijjarto presented Usha Vance with a bouquet of flowers.
“I’m looking forward to seeing my good friend Viktor, and we’ll talk about any number of things related to the U.S.-Hungary relationship,” JD Vance told reporters before leaving Washington on Tuesday.
He said the discussions would also cover broader relations with Europe and Ukraine.
Speaking alongside the Hungarian prime minister during his two-day visit in Budapest, Vance said “the amount of interference that’s come from the bureaucracy in Brussels has been truly disgraceful.”
“I won’t tell the people in Hungary how to vote,” he said, speaking ahead of this weekend’s election.
“I’d encourage the bureaucrats in Brussels to do the exact same thing.”
The election will decide whether Orban secures a fifth consecutive term as prime minister.
Domestic concerns such as the economy and European Union relations are expected to dominate voter decisions in the parliamentary election.
“The bureaucrats in Brussels have tried to destroy the economy of Hungary,” Vance said on Tuesday.
“They have tried to make Hungary less energy independent. They have tried to drive up costs for Hungarian consumers. And they’ve done it all because they hate this guy.”
On Feb. 15, opposition leader Peter Magyar launched the Tisza party’s election campaign in Budapest. The party has set out plans to draw Hungary closer to EU institutions.
Orban, whose Fidesz party has held power since 2010, is one of the EU’s most vocal supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized the close ties between the United States and Hungary during a February trip to Budapest.
He told Orban that Trump is “deeply committed” to Hungary’s success, “because your success is our success.”
Rubio also signed a civil nuclear energy agreement with Hungarian officials to expand decades of cooperation in the sector.
Asli Aydintasbas, visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank, said the vice president’s latest visit is “not routine diplomacy.”
“For the Trump administration, Orban is not just a fellow conservative but a central figure in efforts to establish an illiberal bloc inside Europe. If Orban falls, the movement would suffer,” he said.
In 2023, the Hungarian prime minister publicly declared his support for Trump’s return to the White House. The two leaders met privately at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in March 2024 to discuss issues, including border security.
Trump on Feb. 13 posted an endorsement of Orban on Truth Social, calling him a “truly strong and powerful Leader, with a proven track record of delivering phenomenal results.”
“I was proud to ENDORSE Viktor for Re-Election in 2022, and am honored to do so again,” Trump wrote. “Viktor Orbán is a true friend, fighter, and WINNER, and has my Complete and Total Endorsement for Re-Election as Prime Minister of Hungary — HE WILL NEVER LET THE GREAT PEOPLE OF HUNGARY DOWN!”