Hungary will block transit of weapons for Ukraine

Hungary announced on Monday that it will not send troops or weapons to Ukraine and will block the transit of lethal weapons via its territory, citing security concerns.

"The reason for making this decision is that such deliveries might become targets of hostile military action and ... we have to ensure the security of Hungary ... that we are not getting involved in that war," said Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto during a visit to Kosovo, Reuters reported.

Although Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has cultivated close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the past decade, he recently stated that his government will support all European Union sanctions against Russia.

"Hungary made clear that we support all the sanctions, so we will block nothing, so what the prime ministers of the European Union are able to agree, we accept it and we support it," he told reporters on Saturday. "This is the time to be united, it's a war.”

Since Russia first invaded Ukraine, thousands of Ukrainians have fled the country and found refuge in neighboring Hungary. According to police data, more than 70,000 refugees have entered the country since Thursday, France 24 reported.