ANKARA

Ukraine could turn into the European Union’s version of Afghanistan if US President Donald Trump is unable to secure a peace deal with Russia, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban cautioned.

“If President Trump is not able to find a solution, the war in Ukraine could become easily an Afghanistan for the EU,” said Orban, speaking at a media event over the weekend in Dubai with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

“Endless war, endless conflict, no way out of the conflict, eating up energy, human lives, money, everything, destroying the frame(work) of normal life for the European Union. So we are in serious danger,” he warned.

“The difficulty is -- and that's not my challenge, but it's a challenge to President Trump -- how to convince the Russians to stop the war while the Russians are basically winning. This is the big question,” he added.

Orban’s comments followed new efforts by Trump to advance peace negotiations.

Trump’s latest call with Russian President Vladimir Putin has sparked worries in Kyiv and across Europe that Washington and Moscow might shape Ukraine’s future without its involvement.