Vance ‘sad Orbán lost’ but says US will work with new Magyar government in Hungary – Europe live

US vice-president defends pre-election visit to Hungary with fresh barbs against EU in first comments since Orbán’s loss

Hungarian election winner Péter Magyar has been invited to meet with the Hungarian president, Tamás Sulyok, on Wednesday to discuss the government-formation process following the stunning win over Viktor Orbán in Sunday’s election.

The meeting could be a bit awkward, given Magyar’s repeated calls for Sulyok, an Orbán loyalist, to resign from the office.

“He’s one of the few European leaders we’ve seen who’s been willing to stand up to the bureaucracy in Brussels that has been very, very bad for the United States. So for example, when you see a European bureaucrat go after an American company, sometimes the only vote ‘no,’ the only vote to protect that American interest, has been Viktor Orbán.”

“I think that his legacy in Hungary is transformational, 16 years, fundamentally changing that country.”