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United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s leadership during a visit to Budapest on Monday, just weeks before elections that threaten the nationalist leader’s hold on power.
Rubio’s stop in Hungary marked the final stage of a rapid tour of Europe that also included an address at the Munich Security Conference and a visit to another right-wing ally, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed admiration for Orban, writing in a social media post Friday that the Hungarian leader had delivered “phenomenal” results.
Orban, 62, faces a competitive race in Hungary’s April 12 parliamentary elections. Opinion polls suggest his Fidesz party is trailing the opposition TISZA party led by Peter Magyar.
“I can say to you with confidence that President Trump is deeply committed to your success because your success is our success,” Rubio said at a joint news conference with Orban after their meeting.
“The president has an extraordinarily close relationship with the prime minister, he does, and it has had tangible benefits,” Rubio added.
Orban said Hungary’s next government “will be created after the election in Hungary based on the intention of the Hungarians.”
“Sometimes I lose, sometimes I win,” said Orban, who returned to power in 2010.
“So don’t be afraid of what will be if we are not winning because it’s regularly happened here,” he added.
In a speech Saturday, Orban said he would continue his campaign against what he described as “pseudo-civil organizations, bought journalists, judges, and politicians,” echoing rhetoric used by Trump in the United States.
He also criticized what he called the “oppressive machinery of Brussels,” a reference to the European Union, with which his government has long been at odds.
EU leaders have accused Orban of silencing critical voices in the judiciary, academia, the media, and civil society, as well as targeting minority groups.
His close relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin has also fueled tensions with Brussels, another point of alignment with Trump.
European Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho said at a press briefing that it was “up to the United States government to decide whom, when, and how they support, or not.”
Rubio arrived in Budapest on Sunday and held talks on Monday before returning to Washington.
The decision to visit Orban and Fico, nationalist leaders seen as close to both Trump and Putin and often out of step with EU consensus, sent a clear diplomatic signal.
In remarks at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, Rubio urged Europe to join Trump in defending what he described as Western civilization against mass immigration.
He also sought to reassure European leaders about the U.S. commitment to NATO and its position on Greenland, though reactions were mixed.
In Bratislava on Sunday, Rubio emphasized that Washington was seeking partnership rather than dominance.
“We’re not asking Europe to be a vassal of the United States,” he said. “We want to be your partner. We want to work with Europe. We want to work with our allies.”
Orban is among several leaders planning to travel to Washington this week for the inaugural meeting of Trump’s controversial “Board of Peace,” which critics say is designed to weaken the role of the UN Security Council.
Orban gained prominence among Trump supporters for his hardline stance on migration during the Syrian refugee crisis a decade ago and has made multiple visits to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
Energy cooperation was also discussed during Monday’s talks, mirroring discussions held during Rubio’s visit to Slovakia.
When Orban visited the White House in 2025, Trump exempted Hungary from sanctions on Russian oil and gas imports imposed following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
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