麻豆传媒

World

    • Orban pushes back on aide's comment that Hungary wouldn't have fought a Russian invasion

    Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban talks to reporters at The European House Ambrosetti (TEHA) economic forum in Cernobbio, Como Lake, Italy, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban talks to reporters at The European House Ambrosetti (TEHA) economic forum in Cernobbio, Como Lake, Italy, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
    Share
    BUDAPEST, Hungary -

    Hungary always has and always will defend itself against foreign attacks, Prime Minister Viktor Orb谩n said on Friday after one of his closest aides provoked controversy by suggesting that Hungary wouldn't have fought against a Russian invasion as Ukraine has done.

    Speaking to state radio, Orb谩n sought to downplay the remarks by his political director, Bal谩zs Orb谩n, which stirred outrage among many in Hungary and led to calls for his resignation.

    Speaking on a podcast on Wednesday, Bal谩zs Orb谩n, who is not related to the prime minister, said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had made an 鈥渋rresponsible鈥 decision by opting to militarily defend his country after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. Hungary, he said, has learned that 鈥減recious Hungarian lives鈥 must be treated with caution rather than 鈥渙ffering them up鈥 for defence.

    Prime Minister Orb谩n called the comment 鈥渁n ambiguous statement, which in this context is a mistake."

    He emphasized that Hungary has 鈥渁lways defended itself, it will defend itself today and will continue to defend itself in the future by all possible means.鈥

    Since Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Hungary, a NATO member, has taken an adversarial position toward its neighbor, and sought to block, delay or water down European Union efforts to provide financial and military support to Kyiv and to pass sanctions on Moscow over its war.

    Such efforts have led to accusations from many European leaders that Hungary is acting to divide the EU and advance Russian interests.

    Bal谩zs Orb谩n鈥檚 statements angered many in Hungary who saw them as a suggestion that Hungarian fighters in an anti-Soviet uprising in 1956 had made a mistake by resisting Soviet occupation.

    The uprising was eventually crushed by the Red Army, killing as many as 3,000 civilians and destroying much of the capital Budapest.

    鈥淓very country has the right to decide its own destiny for itself,鈥 Bal谩zs Orb谩n said. 鈥淏ut based on 鈥56, we wouldn鈥檛 have done what President Zelenskyy did two and a half years ago, because that was irresponsible.鈥

    Political director of Prime Minster Viktor Orban of Hungary, Balazs Orban, attends the Worldwide Freedom Initiative event in Paris, Nov. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File)

    Hungary鈥檚 Cold War-era uprising looms large in the country鈥檚 consciousness as a symbol of its heroic struggle for independence and self determination. Some Hungarians view their government鈥檚 close ties to Russia today as a betrayal of the 1956 revolution鈥檚 efforts to force Soviet soldiers out of the country.

    In response to the criticism, Bal谩zs Orb谩n said in a post on social media Thursday that Hungary's government sees 鈥渘o point鈥 to the war in Ukraine, and that 鈥渉undreds of thousands of people have died ... for nothing.鈥

    But on Friday, Prime Minister Orb谩n sought to diffuse the tensions by saying Hungary owes a debt of gratitude to the 鈥漢eroes鈥 and 鈥渇reedom fighters鈥 who took up arms against Soviet oppression in 1956.

    鈥淚f a person talks about such delicate issues, then it must be formulated very precisely, leaving no doubt about our position,鈥 he said.

    On Thursday, Hungary's most prominent opposition figure, P茅ter Magyar, called for Bal谩zs Orb谩n鈥檚 resignation by Oct. 23, the 68th anniversary of the revolution.

    鈥淪uch a man cannot hold public office alongside the Hungarian Prime Minister,鈥 Magyar wrote.

    CTVNews.ca Top Stories

    For decades, Melven Jones couldn鈥檛 talk about what happened to him as a child. He didn鈥檛 even remember it.

    The CEO of the Ottawa Mission is responding to controversial comments made this week by Premier Doug Ford about those living in homeless encampments that received swift blowback from advocates.

    A strike by grain terminal workers at the Port of Metro Vancouver has ended, their employer announced Friday night.

    Canada

    • A man has died after being stabbed at a residence in north Scarborough on Saturday evening, police say.

    • For decades, Melven Jones couldn鈥檛 talk about what happened to him as a child. He didn鈥檛 even remember it.

    • Members of the Southern Georgian Bay OPP and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) are sounding the alarm on a rising number of online and phone scams targeting residents.

    • On Broughdale Ave, barricades kept students to the sidewalks, and on Huron, officers kept directing the young people away from the middle of the road for emergency vehicles.

    • The Pride crosswalk in downtown Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., has been hit by vandalism for the second time in less than three months.

    • Vancouver police officers took a goat into custody Friday night.

    World

    Politics

    Health

    Sci-Tech

    Entertainment

    Business

    Lifestyle

    Sports

    Autos

    • A tale about a taxicab hauling gold and sinking through the ice on Larder Lake, Ont., in December 1937 has captivated a man from that town for decades.

    • A U.S. driver somehow squeezed her vehicle through a parkade hallway at a Metro Vancouver casino Thursday, before getting stuck at an elevator bank.

    Local Spotlight

    A tale about a taxicab hauling gold and sinking through the ice on Larder Lake, Ont., in December 1937 has captivated a man from that town for decades.

    When a group of B.C. filmmakers set out on a small fishing boat near Powell River last week, they hoped to capture some video for a documentary on humpback whales. What happened next blew their minds.

    A pizza chain in Edmonton claims to have the world's largest deliverable pizza.

    Sarah McLachlan is returning to her hometown of Halifax in November.

    Wayne MacKay is still playing basketball twice at Mount Allison University at 87 years old.

    A man from a small rural Alberta town is making music that makes people laugh.

    An Indigenous artist has a buyer-beware warning ahead of Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

    Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.

    An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.

    • For decades, Melven Jones couldn鈥檛 talk about what happened to him as a child. He didn鈥檛 even remember it.

    • A Vancouver man has paid $337,500 to the B.C. Securities Commission as part of an insider trading settlement, the financial regulator announced Friday.

    • Almost 200 pages of research on the B.C. Conservative Party, which sources within BC United confirm were compiled by their party before it dropped out of the British Columbia election campaign to support its former rival, have come back to haunt the new alliance.

    • A man has died after being stabbed at a residence in north Scarborough on Saturday evening, police say.

    • Thousands of dead birds, from kingfishers to blue jays, encircle a wild turkey to illustrate in one snapshot a mere fragment of how many die from colliding into glass windows 鈥 a death that can be easily prevented, the Torontonian photographer says.

    • A man has been taken to the hospital after walking into a restaurant in Toronto鈥檚 west end late Saturday afternoon with stab wounds.

    • A child was sent to hospital after being attacked by a coyote in northwest Calgary.

    • Alberta's premier spoke to calls for an outside, independent investigation into the death of Jon Wells during an incident involving Calgary police last week.

    • A Calgary city councillor's plea to have permanent residents be given the right to vote in municipal elections, an idea long dismissed by Premier Danielle Smith as unconstitutional, has been defeated.

    • The victim has been identified as Chanel Charette, 33.

    • The CEO of the Ottawa Mission is responding to controversial comments made this week by Premier Doug Ford about those living in homeless encampments that received swift blowback from advocates.

    • The federal holiday on Sept. 30 will bring some schedule changes in Ottawa as Canada marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

    • World Wrestling Entertainment Hall-of-Famer Maurice "Mad Dog" Vachon is the inspiration for a local wrestling production company that will bear his name host events on Montreal's West Island to raise money and create memories for sick children.

    • A commemorative rally marking the fourth anniversary of Joyce Echaquan鈥檚 death will take place in Ville-Marie on Saturday afternoon.

    • Members of Montreal鈥檚 Maghrebi community are gathering in a city park this afternoon to sound the alarm about what they call the 鈥渟courge鈥 of street gangs recruiting youth to carry out criminal acts.

    • A man has been charged with second-degree murder in the killing of 25-year-old Wyatt Omeasoo in 2023.

    • A person is in hospital after a hit-and-run crash involving a stolen motorcycle in Grande Prairie early Saturday morning.

    • Alberta鈥檚 government is getting pushback from some municipal leaders and support from others over its plan to build the sheriffs into a second provincial police service.

    • Communities that suffered total losses in Hammonds Plains, N.S., and Upper Tantallon, N.S., in the 2023 wildfire received a donation of trees from Northern Pulp on Saturday.

    • Education and infrastructure were the focus of promises made on the tenth day of New Brunswick鈥檚 provincial election campaign.

    • RCMP Halifax Regional Detachment say they have charged a man with multiple offences, including assaulting a peace officer with a weapon, following a disturbance in Beaver Bank, N.S.

    • As the temperatures begin to drop and the leaves change colour, the time for fall suppers has returned in Manitoba.

    • Hundreds gathered in Winnipeg鈥檚 Memorial Park Saturday afternoon in a solemn ceremony honouring the lives of fallen firefighters.

    • A beloved annual celebration of arts and culture returns to city streets Saturday night.

    • The Town of Lumsden held their ninth annual Scarecrow festival Saturday.

    • The Saskatchewan Roughriders moved into second place in the CFL's West Division with a 29-16 victory over the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday.

    • Minister of Health Everett Hindley wrote to healthcare provider unions on Friday inviting them to join a nursing task force, something the government previously said no to.

    • It鈥檚 homecoming weekend for many students and alumni and preparations are underway to ensure it鈥檚 a safe celebratory weekend.

    • People in Guelph may notice a new addition at the entrance to Franchetto Park in Guelph.

    • The Kitchener Rangers returned to the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium on Friday to the roar of thousands of eager fans.

    • Saskatchewan RCMP says the man who sustained injuries from a serious assault earlier this month has died in hospital.

    • The Saskatchewan Roughriders moved into second place in the CFL's West Division with a 29-16 victory over the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday.

    • Minister of Health Everett Hindley wrote to healthcare provider unions on Friday inviting them to join a nursing task force, something the government previously said no to.

    • A tale about a taxicab hauling gold and sinking through the ice on Larder Lake, Ont., in December 1937 has captivated a man from that town for decades.

    • The CEO of the Ottawa Mission is responding to controversial comments made this week by Premier Doug Ford about those living in homeless encampments that received swift blowback from advocates.

    • On Broughdale Ave, barricades kept students to the sidewalks, and on Huron, officers kept directing the young people away from the middle of the road for emergency vehicles.

    • VIDEO

      VIDEO

      For 28 years, motorcycle riders have gathered at Hully Gully in London, Ont. to raise money for the Children鈥檚 Health Foundation (CHF) and enjoy a fall ride.

    • The town of Aylmer might be getting a little bit larger - it's considering expanding boundaries to include more land, and they鈥檙e holding a meeting on Thursday

    • Huntsville OPP is investigating a two-vehicle collision Friday afternoon that resulted in the death of a motorcycle driver.

    • Midland Fire Service, Southern Georgian Bay OPP and County of Simcoe paramedics responded to an early Saturday morning fire at a residence in Midland, which sent one person to hospital.

    • Two drivers were charged after a vehicle struck a house in northern Barrie Friday evening.

    • Windsor Fire Service is on the scene of a house fire in South Windsor this morning. A single-family dwelling was reported to have been the location of an early morning fire.

    • A collision on Friday evening has resulted in charges for a 32-year-old Lakeshore Resident.

    • Students looking for work while they study had an opportunity to scope out the local employment scene on Wednesday when St. Clair College held its second annual part time job fair.

    • For decades, Melven Jones couldn鈥檛 talk about what happened to him as a child. He didn鈥檛 even remember it.

    • Almost 200 pages of research on the B.C. Conservative Party, which sources within BC United confirm were compiled by their party before it dropped out of the British Columbia election campaign to support its former rival, have come back to haunt the new alliance.

    • A strike by grain terminal workers at the Port of Metro Vancouver has ended, their employer announced Friday night.

    • Fire crews in Vernon, B.C., responded to a large house fire early Saturday morning.

    • A pair of runaway pigs are in the custody of an animal sanctuary in the Okanagan after evading police and volunteers for hours earlier this week.

    • The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.

    • The sentencing for three men convicted of helping lead and coordinate the COVID-19 protest blockade at Coutts, Alta., in 2022 has been delayed.

    • A 10-year-old boy from Lethbridge is being praised as a hero after a routine summer outing at the pool nearly turned tragic for his friend.

    • A man and woman have been charged after a Lethbridge ice creamery was broken into earlier this week. Staff arrived at Cookie Crimes, in the 300 block of Sixth Street South, just before 5:30 a.m. on Monday to discover the front window broken.

    • Sault residents may notice some commotion on the Algoma University campus over the next two weeks as a team conducts an archaeological search.

    • The Pride crosswalk in downtown Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., has been hit by vandalism for the second time in less than three months.

    • Despite a lead at mid-game in front of a near-capacity home crowd, the Sudbury Wolves dropped their first game of their OHL regular season to Barrie, 3-1.

    N.L.

    Shopping Trends

    The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at 麻豆传媒. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop.聽Read about us.

    Stay Connected
    Follow 麻豆传媒