Hungarian Conservative

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.

‘Although the outcome is yet unknown, I think that any kind of ascent should start with the (re)construction of the infrastructure to connect the partners. After the completion of this task, we should think about declaring, promoting and following the basic values and principles shared by the Central European countries and nations. These principles will allow us to find a common language, free from the ‘progressive’ ideologies that characterise the West now.’

Navracsics reminded that Hungary is to receive 14 trillion Hungarian forints in cohesion funds for the 2021-2027 EU budget cycle. Of this amount, 4 trillion forints have already been received and are continuously being used for rural development.

According to Fidesz deputy group leader in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Zsolt Németh the future of conservatism in Europe is bright, as right-wingers on the continent are ‘coming closer together’; and that therefore the slogan of the Budapest seminar could rightly be ‘Conservatives of Europe, unite!’

About a week after the Committee on Budgetary Control officially rejected her renomination, the European Parliament reversed that decision and voted in favour of another six-year term for Gáll-Pelcz on the European Court of Auditors. However, on the same day, the EP also passed a resolution condemning Hungary.

It can be clearly stated that over the past years, the current majority of the European Parliament has not shied away from using the tools provided to it by the treaties to assert its political will, and one of the results of its activism has been that the debate with the Commission on the rule of law in Hungary has shifted to a political-ideological level.

Environmental protection and sustainability have been integral to shaping Europe’s future for decades. The theme and policy framework of the green transition are among the most prominent programmes of the European Commission’s activities, and they have not been overshadowed by the pandemic or the Russo-Ukrainian war, Minister for Regional Development Tibor Navracsics said at the GreenTech exhibition and conference in Zalaegerszeg.

State Secretary for European Affairs János Bóka is confident that about one-third, €13 billion, of the withheld EU funds will be received by Hungary by 2027. The London-based Financial Times, in a piece covering the contentious negotiations, seems to agree with his assertion.

The Hungarian government has vetoed the 11th EU sanctions package against Russia after it was revealed that Volodymyr Zelenskyy allegedly urged the bombing of the Druzhba pipeline, a crucial route via which Russian oil is transferred to Hungary.

This year, the Hungarian academic community commemorates the hundred and twentieth anniversary of the birth of the second ‘Martian’ scientist, John von Neumann, with a variety of events, publications, and exhibitions.

How could Hungarians celebrate the EU, when it is seen as a threat to their ideals, God, nation, and family?

The fate of a sum of 13.2 billion EUR is at stake in the political and legal debate between the European Commission and the government of Hungary. Parts of the regular EU cohesion and post-COVID recovery funds are being withheld, as the Commission has issues with the state of the rule of law in Hungary. The new law, to enter into force on 1 July, aims to resolve the deadlock.

In the face of the challenges of the modern world, the Pope warned against the two contrary temptations of ‘bleak defeatism’ and ‘worldly conformism’.

Apart from causing tragic suffering for the locals and posing a major threat to foreign nationals living in Sudan, the civil war is unfortunately also expected to result in an increase in the number of people trying to enter the EU illegally.

Four Central European countries, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and Bulgaria, have announced bans on foodstuff imports coming from Ukraine. Meanwhile, Romania has joined them in demanding action from the EU to address these concerns. The five countries are estimated to have lost 417 million EUR combined due to cheap Ukrainian food imports.

It is hardly an exaggeration to say that the Court of Justice of the European Union created the principle of primacy of EU law from scratch. Although nowadays the mainstream considers this idea unchallengeable, the task of the constitutional courts is precisely to promote the development of a healthy balance by strengthening the principle of constitutional identity. By finding a balance, the tension between the legal systems of the Member States and EU law might also become reconcilable.

The two major European countries are the 14th and 15th to officially get behind the EU Court proceedings against Hungary for its 2021 law restricting the teaching of gender theory in schools.

The MEP reacted to Ferenc Gyurcsány’s statements made in a radio interview. Deutsch declared that the Democratic Coalition President had publicly admitted that as opposed to his and the European Commission’s claim that there were legal problems between Hungary and the European Union, or that the European Union development funds owed to Hungary had been withheld due to legal issues for years, was a lie.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán emphasised that Budapest and Warsaw will join forces to protect the agricultural workers of Central Europe from the negative effects of ‘grain dumps’ coming from Ukraine.

There is a slowdown in global growth. The economies of a once highly globalized world are drifting apart. The EMU economy is being hit particularly hard. The recession is coming and, according to projections, the EMU will soon enter stagflation, the worst of economic states.

Balázs Hidvéghi spoke up at a session of the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE), calling on the European Left to stop its incessant attacks on Poland.

While Europe desperately needs new partners to wean itself off Russian gas, by becoming an energy exporter, Israel could reduce its isolation and thaw its icy relations with the EU—something that is even more valuable than export revenues for Jerusalem.

Hungary did not veto a joint EU statement on Putin’s arrest warrant, the MFAT’s spokesperson stated on Monday evening. ‘Hungary has taken note of the ICC decision and does not wish to comment on it in any way,’ Máté Paczolay said.

The Strasbourg-based Council of Europe welcomed the positive changes in Hungary since ECRI’s latest report adopted in 2015. However, ECRI also expressed concern about legislative changes that in their view ‘seriously undermine the human rights of LGBTI communities’ and about measures taken during the emergency period declared during the coronavirus pandemic.

According to a recent report prepared by Hungarian think tank Nézőpont Institute, the practices of EU institutions undermine the rule of law in the Union.

The European Parliament has approved new legislation that sets the path towards zero CO2 emissions for new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles by 2035.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal recently stated that the country would like to join the EU in a two-year timetable. However, most member states think that this timeline for Kyiv’s bid is unrealistic.

Rodrigo Ballester, head of the Centre of European Studies at MCC, talked to Hungarian Conservative about the dangers of echo chambers, big tech cannibalising content, and the risks of EU institutions overregulating the press.

Whether the Western Balkans will be inside or outside Europe in the coming decades will also determine the development of the EU, President Katalin Novák emphasised.

The designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organisation would be a serious step by the EU since only Bahrein, Saud Arabia and the United States did so.