A retired Ukrainian general warned that the prime minister should be worried for his children and grandchildren
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has responded to threats against his family made by a retired Ukrainian general.
In a video released on Wednesday, Orban is seen speaking by phone with one of his daughters, urging her to remain calm and cautious and to call him if anything feels wrong.
The prime minister was reacting to Hungarian media reports about remarks made by Ukrainian politician Grigory Omelchenko earlier this week.
Omelchenko cited the US-Israeli assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in which his wife and other family members were also killed, and warned that Orban must change his “anti-Ukrainian” position if he cares about his five children and six grandchildren.
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky recently suggested he would consider sharing Orban’s address with the Ukrainian military so they could “speak to him in their own language.”
Omelchenko – who served in Ukraine’s successor to the Soviet KGB, the SBU – said the organization of former military service members he co-founded does not need a tip from the government to know “where he [Orban] lives, where he sleeps, where he drinks beer and wine, smokes shisha, strolls and meets people.”
Orban said receiving death threats is “unusual” for his family but has brought them closer together. He also warned that “everything has its limit.”
The Orban government has long opposed the EU’s policy of arming and funding Ukraine against Russia, as well as Ukraine’s bid to join the bloc. Tensions escalated in January when Ukraine suspended Russian oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia via a Soviet-built pipeline, claiming it was damaged by a Russian attack – which Moscow has denied.
Orban accused Zelensky of trying to cause an energy crisis in Hungary ahead of key parliamentary elections in April. Orban’s main competitor, Peter Magyar, denounced Zelensky for issuing threats against the prime minister, saying the EU should sever ties with Kiev until the Ukrainian leader apologizes to the Hungarian people.
