Orbán claims he proposed Christmas ceasefire to Ukraine, Zelenskyy's team responds

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán claimed he proposed a Christmas ceasefire to Ukraine, but President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected the offer. Ukraine did not authorize Hungary to make any proposals, according to a statement by presidential communications advisor Dmytro Lytvyn provided to Ukrainian media.

On the evening of December 11, Orbán announced on social media platform X that Zelenskyy dismissed his ceasefire proposal.

"At the end of the Hungarian EU Presidency, we made new efforts for peace. We proposed a Christmas ceasefire and a large-scale prisoner exchange. It's sad that President Zelenskyy clearly rejected and ruled this out today. We did what we could!" Orbán wrote.

Lytvyn responded to the Hungarian prime minister's statement, asserting that the Hungarian side, as usual, did not discuss anything with Ukraine and did not notify Kyiv about its contacts with Moscow.

"As always, Ukraine did not authorize Hungary to do anything. As always, Ukraine is working daily to free prisoners, and relevant contacts for a significant exchange before the end of the year have been ongoing for two weeks," Lytvyn said.

He added that Ukraine is committed to a comprehensive peace and is working in coordination with its partners to achieve this—together with the United States, Europe, and other global partners.

Lytvyn concluded that what is needed is "not PR, but a just peace, and not chatter, but reliable security guarantees."