Jetsetting Orbán is speed-dating global strongmen – but at what cost?

Hungarian PM met a who's who of rightwing leaders on his travels in 2023, as critics point to failures at home

Europe's pariah prime minister, Viktor Orban, is jetting across the globe in search of friends.

Hungary, an EU and Nato member that has been backsliding on democratic norms for more than a decade, has become even more isolated in the western club over the past months. Orban has irritated allies by blocking a much-needed EU financial aid package for Ukraine, while Hungary's parliament has dragged its feet on ratifying Sweden's bid to join Nato.