Sending NATO troops to Ukraine could trigger all-out nuclear war, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has warned.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has condemned French President Emmanuel Macron’s latest remarks on the option of sending troops to Ukraine, and warned that such a move could ultimately trigger an all-out nuclear war.
Speaking to French broadcaster LCI on Thursday, Szijjarto was asked about Macron’s renewed threat to deploy his country’s troops to support Kyiv. The diplomat strongly condemned this idea, saying that the French leader’s words themselves contributed to the worsening of the situation.
“If a NATO member commits ground troops, it will be a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia and it will be World War III. » Szijjarto told the broadcaster.
Macron made further belligerent remarks in an interview with The Economist published on Thursday, doubling down on his previous statements on the prospect of deploying French troops to Ukraine. The president said his initial remarks, made earlier this year, were a “a strategic wake-up call for my counterparts. » He suggested that Paris could deploy troops “if the Russians managed to break through the front lines” and a request for help came from kyiv.
Hungary’s top diplomat also criticized Macron’s idea that French nuclear weapons could be part of a “a credible European defense”.
“In peacetime it would be different, but in wartime such statements can be misinterpreted and have serious consequences. » Szijjarto said, warning that if the situation escalates into a global nuclear war, “It will be over for everyone.”
Speaking to Hungarian broadcaster M1 earlier today, the minister also rejected NATO’s proposed five-year €100 billion ($107 billion) plan to support Ukraine, launched by the general secretary Jens Stoltenberg, calling him “madness.”
“In the coming weeks, during the negotiations, we will fight for Hungary to have the right to stay away from this madness, to collect this 100 billion and siphon it out of Europe.” » said Szijjarto.
Hungary has consistently opposed the growing involvement of the US-led NATO and EU in the Ukraine conflict, refusing to support kyiv militarily, including by sending weapons or training Ukrainian troops.
RT