At odds over democracy:German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest,Hungary.Credit:Getty Images
"Not all democracies have to be liberal,"said Mr Orban,who plans to host Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 17."Those who say that democracy is necessarily liberal are trying to put one school of thought above the rest and we're not going to grant that privilege."
As Greece's week-old government threatens to disrupt the 28-nation EU's fragile consensus on sanctions,Dr Merkel is seeking to shore up the front she helped form last year against Russia. In recent months,Mr Orban has shifted away from cultivating a relationship with Mr Putin and back toward Germany,Hungary's No.1 investor.
Hungary supports only steps that bring peace closer in eastern Ukraine's fighting between government forces and pro-Russian separatists,Mr Orban said. Dr Merkel said there's no military solution and ruled out arms shipments to Ukraine's government. Meanwhile,Hungary is showing"European solidarity"by pumping natural gas to Ukraine via the so-called reverse flow process,she said.
Organisers of a protest rally planned for Monday urged Dr Merkel in an open letter on Facebook to stand up for the EU's democratic values and rein in Mr Orban. The two leaders discussed what constitutes democracy,Dr Merkel said at the news conference.
"We spoke about the issue of democracy and its attributes,"she said."This discussion needs to be deepened"and"honestly,I can't put the words'illiberal'and'democracy'together."
After initially upbraiding the EU for its actions against Russia,as well as negotiating a $US14 billion loan from the Kremlin,Mr Orban shifted to voicing support for Ukraine's sovereignty,called Germany his"compass"on foreign policy and visited NATO troops stationed in Lithuania in November.
EU foreign ministers on Thursday moved toward further sanctions against Russia as Greece's new government under Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras backed off its veto threat.