Romania in the Schengen Area ‘Hungary’s National Interest,’ Foreign Minister Szijjártó Says

While Romania did partially join the Schengen Area in March 2024, eliminating border checks for sea and air travel with other nations within the zone, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó of Hungary would like to see the check-free travel extended to land transportation as well. He believes that it would facilitate trade between Hungary and Romania; and would make it easier for ethnic Hungarians living in Romania to visit their motherland.

Caspar David Friedrich, The Abbey in the Oakwood (1809–1810). Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany

Crisis? What Crisis?

‘Just as liberalism did not succeed in transforming people after socialism, neither did the competing anti-liberal, post-Christian, nihilistic trends. The solution is certainly not political or movement-based: those had already failed by the middle of the twentieth century.’

Chinese President Xi Jinping (CL) and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (CR) stand in front of the Carmelita Monastery in Budapest prior to their official talks on 9 May 2024.

Why Is Hungary Turning to China? A Cultural Theory

‘It seems to me that Orbán sees his people as having a greater chance of surviving the disintegration of the West by forming ties to China. He might be proven wrong by history. But make no mistake: the dilemma facing Viktor Orbán is a lot like that facing Grand Prince Géza: How to strengthen the position of the small Hungarian nation amid the struggle of powerful states and empires? Géza’s geopolitical decision to baptism his son as a Latin Christian set the course of Hungarian history for a millennium. The stakes may well be as high for Orbán today.’

Filippino Lippi, Triumph of St Thomas Aquinas over the Heretics (1489–1491). Basilica di Santa Maria sopra Minerva, Rome, Italy

Opportunities for Christian Realism Today

‘Christian realism is not unprincipled power politics or mere pragmatism, but the intelligent use of power and politics for the sake of representing Christian ideas and the common good (bonum commune), within the bounds of worldly political constraints.’

Hungary Addresses EU Concerns Over Belarusian, Russian Worker Visas

Hungarian Interior Minister Sándor Pintér has addressed the European Commission’s concerns regarding the extension of the Hungarian National Cards programme to Russia and Belarus. In a letter sent to Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson, Pintér emphasized that Belarusian and Russian guest workers arriving in Hungary would undergo thorough screening to ensure compliance with EU regulations and would not pose a threat to the national security of Schengen member states.

Minister Bóka Denounces EU Commission Decision on Migrant Quotas

In his Facebook post, Minister for European Union Affairs János Bóka criticized the EU Commission for its mandate concerning Hungary to maintain the capacity to process nearly 8,000 foreign nationals at the border, as per the controversial EU Migration Pact passed by the EU Parliament this April.

Anonymous, St Catherine of Siena Besieged by Demons (ca. 1500). Warsaw National Museum, Warsaw, Poland

Europe at an Ideological Crossroads: Unity in Progressivism or Sovereignty in Diversity?

‘Europe finds itself at a critical situation, faced with a fundamental choice between unity in progressivism or sovereignty in diversity…Central to this decision is the recognition of Europe’s intrinsic diversity, rooted in centuries of history, cultural exchange, and shared heritage. This diversity, inherently European, forms the essence of the continent’s identity and should be cherished and preserved. Importantly, efforts to import diversity from external sources often lead to fragmentation and discord, rather than enriching European society.’