Orban says he will continue working on Ukrainian settlement

MOSCOW. July 5 (Interfax) - Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban intends to continue working to resolve the Ukrainian crisis despite the wide gap between Moscow's and Kiev's positions on Ukrainian settlement, he said.

"I realized that the positions are very far from one another," Orban told a press conference after talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.

"Very many steps need to be made to get nearer the conclusion of the war," Orban said.

"However, we made a very important step: we have established contact and I will be working further on this matter," he said.

"I wanted to hear, and I did, Mr. President's opinion on three important issues: what he thinks about the currently available peace initiatives, what he also thinks about ceasefire and peace talks, in what sequence these could be held, and thirdly, I was interested in [Putin's] vision of Europe after the war. I am grateful to Mr. President for the frank and honest conversation," Orban said.