President Donald Trump on Saturday congratulated Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary on his recent re-election.
The White House said Trump spoke with the Hungarian leader, who is known for his hard-line views on immigration and criticism of investor and political activist George Soros.
The White House said that, during their conversation, Trump and Orban discussed the need for strong national borders and discussed Trump's recent summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Trump has developed a pattern of openly praising and embracing authoritarian leaders, in a break from past presidents.
He's lauded Kim as a smart and talented man, called Russia's Vladimir Putin a strong leader, and marveled recently that China's Xi Jinping is "essentially president for life,'' saying: "That's pretty good.''