Hungarian PM skips peace summit for Euro 2024 football match

The Hungarian prime minister decided not to participate in the peace summit in Switzerland. Allegedly, the problem was Russia's absence. However, it seems that Orban, as a football fan, simply had other plans. He supported the Hungarian national team during their match against Switzerland in Cologne.

The Hungarian prime minister's expression, however, was not too cheerful. And it's no wonder—the Hungarian national team lost to Switzerland 1:3.

The Hungarian minister of foreign affairs, Péter Szijjártó, also turned out to be a football fan. On his Facebook profile, he not only reminded everyone that the Hungarian national team was playing their first match in Euro 2024 in Cologne on Saturday but also posted videos indicating that he, too, had gone to Germany to support the national team.

"Szijjártó and Orban are sitting in the stands, so for now, there's no one at the Ukraine conference in Switzerland," wrote political scientist Dr. Dominik Hejj on his channel on the X platform. "Szijjártó declared his presence, so he will probably fly over after the match. Interesting to see in what mood," he added.

The peace summit in Switzerland started on Saturday, with delegations from 101 countries and organizations participating. Swiss officials who are hosting the conference stated that over 50 heads of state and government would join the meeting at the Buergenstock resort overlooking Lake Lucerne.

The conference is attended by, among others, President Andrzej Duda, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and US Vice President Kamala Harris.

Turkey and Saudi Arabia have sent their foreign ministers, while key developing countries like Brazil, an observer at the event, and India and South Africa will be represented at lower levels.

China, which supports Russia, joined dozens of countries that did not participate in the conference.