According to an analysis by the Makronóm Institute, Hungary can be considered a connector state, as it acts as a major link in the global economy, especially in combining Eastern and Western technologies. This is particularly true in the case of the automotive industry and energy storage systems, where Hungary has attracted significant investments.

The second ministerial-level meeting of the EU accession conference with Albania was held in Luxembourg on 15 October. The aim of the meeting was to start accession negotiations with Albania and open Cluster 1; Tirana has thus taken another step forward on the road to European integration.

The Claude Monet: The Immersive Experience exhibition in the BOK Sports Hall uses modern digital technologies to bring to life some of the French impressionist painter’s most famous masterpieces, such as the Poppy Field and his series titled Haystacks. The artworks will be on display until 2 March 2025.

‘It’s not easy to stick to quality these days. A restaurant like Pajta can only be run with with love. It’s not worth it for the profit…This kind of catering is not about striking it rich; it is the kind that you can love.’

Achieving the demographic turnaround will take a long time and a lot of work, but Hungary wants to take the first steps already in the coming months. Finding solutions to existing problems will be one of the key objectives of the Hungarian EU Presidency in the second half of 2024, using the EU demographic toolkit as a starting point.

‘In contrast to five years ago, the legitimacy of the Commission’s former and future President has been weak from the start in 2024. Although she is a Spitzenkandidat now, as she was the leader of the European People’s Party list in the European Parliament elections, the support of the leaders of the Member States is much weaker. In Germany, she is considered an opposition politician, so she is not a favourite but rather a forced choice for the governing coalition.’

At first glance, today’s cinema culture in Budapest seems very bipolar. There seems to be a tension between those who believe that traditional screening venues are long out of date and those who doubt whether a multiplex experience can be called cinema at all. One thing is certain: the story of Budapest’s cinema culture continues to unfold every day, and the main protagonists are us, cinema lovers.

Ursula von der Leyen’s Europe’s Choice programme will be the working document on the basis of which the Commissioners designate will receive their portfolios and, when they take office, the mandate in which the Commission President will set out their work and expectations for the next five years. And the implementation of these visions will be the task for this period to come.

When it got to the point where Zsuzsa and her family had to deliver sweets to a hundred places one Christmas, they felt they had reached a crossroads: ‘We knew we couldn’t go on like this. Either we cut it back and get on with our common lives or we take a sharp turn towards chocolate.’

The integration of the countries of the region into the EU is a decades-long process, the positive outcome of which is still to be seen. Thus, the number of Eurosceptics in the region has multiplied in recent years. As a consequence of the protracted accession negotiations, which have not even started for several Western Balkan states, some countries in the region have forged closer economic, political, and cultural ties with non-EU actors.