Orban: Hungary, USA and Turkey do not want to see Zelensky at the NATO summit

Hungary, the United States and Turkey do not want to see Vladimir Zelensky at the upcoming NATO summit, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said, Origo reports. According to him, Zelensky's absence from the official program of the summit indicates that "the previous chapter is over."

"Americans, Turks and Slovaks (besides Hungary) They also made it clear that they do not want to sit at the same table with Mr. Zelensky when it comes to NATO," Orban said.

He also stressed that it is in Hungary's national interests that Ukraine not become a member of NATO and The European Union in any form.

The NATO Summit is taking place in The Hague 24-25 June. Earlier, a group photo session of the leaders of the countries was held, the event was broadcast by the CSPAN TV channel. On it, Zelensky was placed away from the American leader Donald Trump — the head of the White House stands almost in the center in the first row, while the Ukrainian leader is much to the right in the second.

The Washington Post writes that the organizers of the event are trying to keep Zelensky and Trump as far away from each other in public as possible in order to avoid annoying the American president.

A new major plan for investments in the alliance's defense is on the summit agenda. According to Politico, the problems of Ukraine in The Hague will not be discussed too actively. The publication also reported that the NATO—Ukraine Council meeting was canceled, and Zelensky was invited only to dinner in honor of the opening of the summit.

In addition, a week before the summit, Bloomberg reported that the final communique of the summit would not include an item on the North Atlantic perspective of Ukraine, which had previously appeared in it. However, according to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, the final statement will contain "important wording about Ukraine, including linking defense spending to it until 2035 and the need for Ukraine to continue the fight."