Stability of Western Balkans essential for EU, says Hungarian premier

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Thursday that it is "essential" for the EU to have stability in the Western Balkans, which includes Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, and Serbia.

Orban met with Milorad Dodik, the president of the Republika Srpska, one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's two entities, in the Hungarian capital Budapest.

"The stability of the Western Balkans is essential for the European Union," he wrote on X after the meeting.

"Instead of lecturing and sanctions, we believe in dialogue and cooperation," he said, adding: "My meeting with President @MiloradDodik today served this purpose."