Armed forces chief: Hungarian army ready to protect country

Returning to Hungary from an official visit to the United States during which he met General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi told journalists on Saturday that Hungary, like the US, had its own intelligence on the Russia-Ukraine situation, but it was important to observe that “we live here; Ukraine is our neighbour, and the United States is on the other side of the ocean.”

He said the Hungarian Armed Forces were capable of handling “the current situation”. “The Hungarian armed forces are preparing for all possible courses of action.”

Asked whether American soldiers may be located to Hungary, Ruszin-Szendi noted NATO’s annual training exercises would be taking place and foreign soldiers would be present in Hungary this year.

“Our soldiers will also be taking part in exercises abroad,” he added.

Gaspar Maroth, the government commissioner for defence development, noted that the Hungarian side had observed a live demonstration of an artillery rocket launcher system, and Hungary was considering “this capability”, adding that among the possible systems that may be procured was the US medium and long-range missile launcher under development.