Hungarian Conservative

Balázs Orbán on Hungary’s EU Presidency, Kosovo, the Future of the EU and the US Presidential Election

Balázs Orbán at the conference on the government’s public administration fellowship programme held at the Lónyay-Hatvany Villa in October 2021.
Márton Mónus/MTI
Balázs Orbán pointed out that Hungarian foreign policy has long sought to draw attention to the fact that the Balkans should be offered the prospective of European integration. ‘This is another potential conflict zone that can explode just like the Ukrainian-Russian conflict. It is important for every EU country to stand in favour of the Western Balkans enlargement policy for the sake of the stability of the region,’ he emphasised.

The Hungarian government is actively preparing for the upcoming presidency of the European Union, Orbán Balázs, the political director of the Prime Minister said in an interview with Magyar Nemzet. Among other things, he shared his opinion on the tense situation that has emerged in the Balkans.

The political director criticised Ursula von der Leyen, stating that all available information indicates that the President of the European Commission, who is supposed to represent the entire Union, holds a more radical stance compared to the larger European member states and has adopted positions that are similar to those of the United States on the most critical issues.

Balázs Orbán nailed down that asking who the leaders of European institutions actually represent makes sense, since it seems that neither large nor small member states are being properly represented. ‘Why, with what kind of legitimacy are they there then?’, the political director asked.

In terms of strategic partnerships, he stated that

Hungary needs to find allies in Central Europe, and at the same time attempt to establish good relations with France and Germany.

‘Everything else is just an extra’, he remarked.

Speaking about his recent trip to France, Mr Orbán highlighted that there is a similarity in the way the two countries think about the future of Europe. The French also seem to hold that in this new, Cold War-like, disjointed world order, Europe must be able to formulate its own interests and act according to them, thereby taking a different position than other players in world politics.

The political director noted that in every member state there are right-wing actors who see the future of Europe and its problems in the same way as the Hungarian government does. As he said, those who sympathise with Hungary ‘do not want a European empire, do not want war, or European institutions that support illegal migration.’ These actors also reject gender propaganda, which is being imposed on the member states from Brussels, and do not want to give up their foreign policy independence.

In the interview, the tense political situation in Kosovo was also discussed. Balázs Orbán pointed out that Hungarian foreign policy has long sought to draw attention to the fact that the Balkans should be offered the prospective of European integration. ‘This is another potential conflict zone that can explode just like the Ukrainian-Russian conflict. It is important for every EU country to stand in favour of the Western Balkans enlargement policy for the sake of the stability of the region,’ he emphasised.

The US-Hungarian diplomatic relations are not without difficulties, Mr Orbán noted.

Communication with local and Washington representatives of the Democratic administration is quite challenging due to political differences,

he added. Regarding the upcoming US presidential election, Balázs Orbán stated that Hungarian government officials personally know all the candidates and have a good relationship with them, and he wished them a good competition. It is no secret, however, that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán roots for the victory of President Donald Trump, Balázs Orbán remarked.

The political director was also asked about the resolution adopted by the European Parliament last Thursday, which questions the rule of law in Hungary. According to Balázs Orbán, this action by the left-wing majority in the European Parliament

is another war-mongering pressure tactic.

‘The Hungarian left-wing representatives have a qualified responsibility, as they are once again working against their own country in a truly astonishing manner. Hungary traditionally fulfils the presidency tasks to everyone’s satisfaction, and I am confident that it will be the same this time as well,’ concluded Orbán Balázs.


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Balázs Orbán pointed out that Hungarian foreign policy has long sought to draw attention to the fact that the Balkans should be offered the prospective of European integration. ‘This is another potential conflict zone that can explode just like the Ukrainian-Russian conflict. It is important for every EU country to stand in favour of the Western Balkans enlargement policy for the sake of the stability of the region,’ he emphasised.

CITATION