Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Tibor Navracsics has told German daily Die Welt that European Union sanctions will only make Russia turn away from Europe and this will weaken Europe.

In an interview published on Friday, Mr. Navracsics – who is also Hungary’s nominee for a seat on the European Commission – told the conservative newspaper that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is not the only politician with this view, but he is the one who has said it most clearly. Despite Hungary being among the five EU members suffering most from the sanctions, it will remain loyal to the EU and NATO and not breach them.

However, he added, Hungary urges a solution that would be less damaging to the EU and better suited to resolving the crisis. “It is in our interest that the conflict be resolved, because if this fails one way or another Hungary will be among those that lose the most,” he said.  Asked whether he trusts that the West would protect Hungary from Russia, Mr. Navracsics said that in 1945 and 1956 Hungary had bad experiences of the West’s expressions of solidarity.   “Personally, I still trust that our NATO and EU memberships guarantee proper protection,” he added.

Mr. Navracsics said that Hungary is not threatened as much as the Baltic states, but its sense of security could increase if NATO strengthens its presence in the Baltic region. If NATO rejects the request from the Baltic states, however, then “it may raise the suspicion among Hungarians that NATO will not help us if we find ourselves in a similar situation,” he added.

(MTI)