Miklós Szánthó warned that Brussels’ plan to seize frozen Russian assets amounts to a ‘message of war’, and spoke out against the EU circumventing Hungary’s veto on the matter. He also shared that at an anti-war rally, PM Viktor Orbán said Europe faces three dangers: war, migration, and political interference from Brussels in national elections.
Criticizing the EU is becoming increasingly difficult with online censorship rules, such as the Digital Services Act, as well as member state rules in France and Germany against ‘insulting’ certain politicians.
Italy has joined Belgium, Bulgaria and Malta in resisting the European Commission’s plan to use frozen Russian assets as collateral for a €210 billion loan to Ukraine, warning of profound legal and financial risks. The pushback intensifies scrutiny of Brussels’s decision to invoke emergency powers to sidestep expected vetoes from Hungary and Slovakia.
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is riding an extraordinary wave, securing its first Scottish council seat and overtaking Labour to become Britain’s largest party by membership. The developments, both hailed as historic moments, underscores the accelerating collapse of the UK’s traditional two-party system.
Hungary has already broken its 2024 tourism record, welcoming over 18.2 million guests by 2 December. With balanced domestic and international visitor numbers, Budapest and Lake Balaton remain top destinations, and strong holiday-season bookings point to another successful year ahead, Visit Hungary has shared.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán accused Brussels of ‘systematically raping European law’ after the Commission triggered an emergency clause to indefinitely freeze Russian assets—bypassing unanimity and clearing the way ahead of its controversial Ukraine reparations loan.
With 21 out of the 40 Republican State Senators joining the ten Democrats, a new congressional map for the state of Indiana that would have presumably given two more seats to the GOP has been rejected by the Indiana General Assembly. This is a major setback for President Trump’s party, in a midterm election that is shaping up to be a lot closer than it was during his first term.
‘For the Budapest-centric circles I move in, the strategy paper consists mainly of familiar assumptions and positions.’
‘Takaichi stood in front of applauding ministers when she announced her plans to allow workers to work up to 100 overtime hours a month.’
Ferencváros came back against the Scottish side Rangers, beating them 2–1 at home. With that victory, not only did they keep their unbeaten record in the Europa League campaign, but they also secured their spot in the knock-out stage of the competition next spring.
Viktor Orbán praised Donald Trump’s new National Security Strategy as ‘the most important and interesting’ document of recent years, saying it finally recognizes the civilizational crisis Europe faces. The Hungarian prime minister wrote that America now sees the decline Hungary has been fighting against for 15 years.
In an open letter to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Prime Minister Robert Fico of Slovakia has called on the EU to abandon the dogmatic approach to climate policy and chase the net zero agenda for the sake of the struggling European industry, especially the automotive sector. The letter was co-signed by five other PMs, including Viktor Orbán of Hungary and Giorgia Meloni of Italy.
The 2026 National Secondary School Ranking—compiled by Mathias Corvinus Collegium and the Education Office—has been released, assessing more than 400 institutions nationwide. This year’s expanded edition introduces new indicators, including a pedagogical value-added index and a school health and sports ranking.
A major new survey shows Europeans overwhelmingly agree with Donald Trump’s claim that their leaders are ‘weak’, with voters in Germany, France and the UK rating the US president as far stronger and more decisive than their own heads of government—undercutting Brussels’ furious response to Trump’s remarks.
POLITICO Brussels reports that Belgium may soon be treated like Hungary—isolated, ignored and punished—simply for refusing Ursula von der Leyen’s EUR 165 billion Ukraine loan scheme. The message is unmistakable: in today’s EU, disagreement is no longer tolerated, and the system is shifting toward open coercion.
Responding to the Tisza Party’s leaked economic programme proposing tax hikes and austerity measures, the Center for Fundamental Rights and the Oeconomus Economic Research Foundation launched the #FreeHungariansAgainstAusterity task force. At the kick-off event, experts stressed the sharp contrast between Fidesz’s economic policy and the opposition’s plans.
‘Some argue, however, that the EU’s “solidarity” pool is nothing but a punishment for those countries that handled migration well over the years.’
President Santiago Peña, a member of the conservative Colorado Party, became the first incumbent Paraguayan President to visit Hungary in 30 years. He has met with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, President Tamás Sulyok, and House Speaker László Kövér of Hungary as well.
Hungary will challenge EU migration and energy decisions while launching a new solar storage programme and major infrastructure projects, Minister Gergely Gulyás announced following Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, which focused on economic and EU-related issues.
‘As part of the high-level meetings, Hungary and Türkiye also convened the first-ever session of the Hungarian–Turkish Consultation Mechanism, bringing together the foreign ministers, defence ministers and national security officials of both countries—a format Türkiye reserves only for its closest partners.’
‘If the countries of Europe truly fear abandonment by the United States, they should first and foremost invest in their own security.’
The first BYD production equipment has arrived in Szeged, Hungary, with trial manufacturing set for Q1 2026 and full production in Q2, the Chinese automotive industry news site CarNewsChina.com reported.
A new US-conducted poll shows Prime Minister Viktor Orbán maintaining a strong lead ahead of the 2026 Hungarian elections. Fidesz stands at 44 per cent, while the Tisza Party faces declining credibility after the leak of a controversial policy document.
The Danube Institute launched its new Turkic Western Engagement Initiative (TWEI) in Budapest on Tuesday with a high-profile conference exploring how the West and the Turkic world can deepen cooperation amid growing geopolitical volatility, with particular emphasis on Hungary’s strategic bridging role.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine has met with the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany in London to secure continued European war aid to his nation. After the meeting, he told reporters that Ukraine has ‘no legal or moral right’ to cede land to Russia. Dr Sándor Seremet from the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs has commented on the latest development in the Russo–Ukrainian war.
Türkiye and Hungary elevated their relations to an enhanced strategic partnership on Monday, as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán met in Istanbul. The leaders highlighted deepening cooperation in trade, defence, transport and culture, setting a new framework for long-term collaboration.
Artificial intelligence could become the new driving force of the financial system, said Norbert Izer, Managing Director for Financial Markets and Digitalization at the Hungarian National Bank, emphasizing its potential to transform supervision, forecasting, and risk detection.
X is filled with videos of the Budapest Christmas lights, as well as the large outdoor festive market located near St Stephen’s Basilica.
Hungary ranks among the top ten most competitive tax systems in the OECD, according to the 2025 International Tax Competitiveness Index. Scoring 78.7 points, Hungary placed ninth overall, performing especially strongly in corporate and individual taxation, reinforcing its appeal to international investors.
Gergely Gulyás warned that the Tisza Party’s plans would require massive austerity and billions in spending cuts. He argued the party would scrap taxes on multinationals, shifting the burden to citizens, and said a Tisza–DK coalition would risk repeating past left-wing austerity cycles.