the American ambassador denounces “Viktor Orban’s embrace with Vladimir Putin”

Words that risk annoying those in power. The American ambassador to Hungary launched a virulent attack on Tuesday, December 5, against Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who “hugs” Vladimir Putin, puts books discussing homosexuality in plastic and establishes a security agencyworrying” powers. In office since September 2022, David Pressman regularly denounces attacks on the rule of law by the Magyar government and its proximity to Moscow despite the war in Ukraine.

The American diplomat was speaking before the American Chamber of Commerce in Budapest. At a time when Viktor Orban could block two key decisions on Ukraine at the European Union summit next week, David Pressman was outraged at the “contempt” of Hungary, a “ally” of NATO which “hugs Putin” And “threatens to obstruct crucial aid for its Ukrainian neighbor”.

The American envoy, who is openly gay, also criticized the toughening of anti-LGBT+ measures. “When books are packed” to prevent minors from leafing through them, “when bookstores get fined”, “when the director of a museum is fired” for not having prohibited access to photos representing homosexual people for those under 18 years of age, “imagine the questions being asked in Hollywood about the future of the entertainment industry in Hungary”he said.