After two days of silence following Hungary's historic elections, US President Donald Trump has issued a measured response to the defeat of his ally Viktor Orban, but refrained from openly congratulating his challenger, Peter Magyar. Meanwhile, the Kremlin expressed support for Magyar’s willingness to engage in pragmatic dialogue with Russia, but Budapest was added to the 'unfriendly countries' list.

In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Trump referred to Orban as "a friend" and praised his approach to immigration. "He was my friend; this was not my choice, but he was a good man. He handled the immigration issue very well. He didn’t allow people to come in and destroy his country, as happened in Italy," Trump said, emphasising Orban's tough stance on immigration.

So far, the US administration has not sent its congratulations to the new Tisza government. Washington heavily backed Orban’s re-election campaign. US Vice President JD Vance was also dispatched to Budapest as a gesture of support for Orbán, underscoring the close alignment between the two political figures, days before the election.

On Fox News, JD Vance expressed confidence that Washington "would certainly be able to work well" with the new leadership, while describing Orbán as a key political partner of the United States in Europe. He said his recent visit to Budapest ahead of the election was intended as a show of support for a leader who had consistently defended US interests in European Union disputes.

Orban was “one of the few European leaders willing to stand up to a European bureaucracy that behaves badly towards the United States”, adding that in some cases he had been the only EU leader to vote in favour of US interests in disputes involving American companies. The vice president acknowledged that pre-election polling had already indicated the possibility of Orban’s defeat but said the visit was justified as a gesture of political support.

He called Orban’s 16-year premiership “transformative,” saying it had fundamentally reshaped Hungary. Despite expressing regret over Orbán’s defeat, he stressed that the United States would maintain strong relations with Hungary and look forward to cooperation with the incoming government.

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov at a press briefing on April 14 said Moscow "positively assesses" the possibility of pragmatic engagement with Hungary, adding that Russia would take its cues from concrete steps taken by the new government. Russia respects the decision of Hungarian voters and seeks to maintain pragmatic relations, but noted that it does not issue formal congratulations to leaders of countries it classifies as "unfriendly".

Hungary was added to that latter category after Peter Magyar defeated pro-Russian leader Viktor Orban in the April 12 elections, RBC-Ukraine noted. Orban was widely seen as Putin’s voice in Europe and repeatedly obstructed European decisions aimed at supporting Ukraine. In the latest election, Orban received full backing from Moscow, which reportedly poured significant resources into boosting the Kremlin-friendly candidate.

Peskov’s comments came after Magyar told international reporters on April 13 that he would not initiate contact with Putin but would accept a phone call if received. The Tisza Party leader also said that, if such a conversation took place, he would urge the Russian president to end the war in Ukraine.

Fielding a question, he described Russia as a security risk for Europe while stressing the need for a pragmatic approach in areas such as energy and economic cooperation. He said a future Hungarian government would aim to diversify energy supplies, although he did not rule out continued imports of Russian energy.

Hungary remains heavily dependent on Russian oil and gas imports, while cooperation with Moscow continues in the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant, he said.

In related news, Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev addressed Magyar’s comments on the Paks 2 nuclear project on April 14, stating the company is ready to justify the project's costs and efficiency. The prime minister-elect, in his first press briefing after the election, called for a review of the contract, citing concerns over overpricing.

Likhachev emphasised that Hungary will benefit from nuclear energy for over 70% of its electricity, boosting energy security and competitiveness. The €12.5bn project, set for completion by 2030-2031, has been developed in collaboration with the IAEA, with all decisions made transparently.