Euractiv: Hungary toned down V4 statement supporting Czechia in row with Russia

The Visegrád Four countries – Czechia, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary – on Monday approved an official declaration to support Prague in its ongoing diplomatic row with Moscow. A harsher wording of the group’s statement was deemed unacceptable by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Euractiv reports.

The diplomatic row began nearly two weeks ago after Prague accused Russian agents of orchestrating a deadly explosion at a Czech ammunition depot in 2014, resulting in a large tit-for-tat expulsion of diplomats.

Poland and Slovakia have announced the expulsion of Russian diplomats in solidarity with Czechia, but Hungary has not announced similar steps. The initial Visegrád Four declaration, drafted by Poland, called for cancelling the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, which it said represented a threat to energy security, and also expressed strong support for Ukraine and Belarus.