Budapest, Jul 15 (AP) Top EU officials will boycott informal meetings hosted by Hungary while the country has the EU's rotating presidency, after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban held a series of meetings with foreign leaders that angered European partners, the European Commission said Monday.

The highly unusual decision to have the European Commission president and other top officials of the body boycott the meetings was made 'in light of recent developments marking the start of the Hungarian (EU) presidency," commission spokesperson Eric Mamer posted Monday on X.

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Hungary took over the rotating role July 1, and since then Orban has visited Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan, China, and the United States on a world tour he's touted as “peace mission” aimed at brokering an end to Russia's war in Ukraine. His government is friendly with Russia and has gone against the policy of most EU countries in supporting Ukraine.

The decision by the European Commission applies to informal meetings hosted by Hungary. Senior civil servants will attend instead of top officials like the European Commission president, currently Ursula von der Leyen. (AP)

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(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)