NATO-Russia Council Resumes

NATO and the US at the negotiation table across the Kremlin this week, with both sides seeking dialogue but reserving optimism for any potential breakthrough. Hungary continues to block ministerial-level talks between the North Atlantic Alliance and Kyiv over minority rights of ethnic Hungarians in southwestern Ukraine, while Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has received re-election endorsement and praise for strongman leadership from former US President Donald Trump. Hungary’s illiberal tendencies, however, are contributing to growing division within the Visegrad Group, says new Czech EU Affairs Minister Mikuláš Bek.