Hungarian Conservative

Brussels recently unveiled its climate target, adjusted in the wake of the farmer protests. However, the ambitious plan is still founded on a flawed approach: the EU is prioritizing mitigation over adaptation, imposing a greater financial burden on member states than what is truly necessary.

The investigation into the Brussels corruption scandal, which has been ongoing for more than a year with left-wing MEPs at its centre, could be jeopardized, as revealed by a recently released audio recording.

Balázs Orbán observes that Brussels believes it is in the interest of European countries for the Russo-Ukrainian war to continue or possibly escalate. Hungary, on the other hand, is of a different opinion; this conflict has no military solution and a diplomatic resolution is needed.

Orbán told public radio that Hungary only consented to financial contributions allocated towards efforts to prevent the collapse of the Ukrainian state at the Thursday Council meeting. He said peace was the crucial issue as regards the war between Russia and Ukraine but ‘the situation is not good in this respect, since Brussels is suffering from war fever’.

Concerning press reports suggesting that an Italian defendant charged with participation in last year’s Antifa attacks is being held in demeaning conditions in a Budapest prison, Gulyás said all detention conditions meet European Union and Hungarian standards. Inmates are given three meals a day, he stressed, dismissing the claim that prison cells are rat-infested. He reminded that foreign inmates are also informed of prison rules in their mother tongue upon admission.

The Prime Minister expressed concern about the lack of proper respect for agriculture as a crucial element of the European economy within the European Union. He criticized unfavourable regulations imposed in several countries, making the situation difficult for farmers.

Brussels is allegedly considering economic retaliation against Hungary should Viktor Orbán vetoe further funding for Ukraine, as indicated by a leaked document. However, the conflicting statements surrounding the purported plan suggest only one thing: there is chaos in Brussels, with EU funds having long been viewed as a tool for political blackmail.

Hungary’s voting rights in the EU could be suspended if it does not vote in favour of a proposal to amend the EU’s multiannual budget to give Ukraine €50 billion in aid from the common European budget over the next five years.

The analysis highlights that the national consultation once again proved that Brussels, along with the continental and domestic liberal-left, is not in conflict with the Hungarian government but rather with the Hungarian people.

A brief review of the European policy of the Hungarian Government and of that of the domestic opposition.

Tamás Deutsch articulated that it irks the European left that the Hungarian people consistently, through democratic elections, overwhelmingly support a nationalistic, sovereignist policy. He added that the European left seeks to forcefully override these decisions through political pressure.

As for 2024: once we have passed the most difficult and dangerous year, we can move on to the next one, the year of sovereignty protection. We who are interested in Hungary remaining a Hungarian country.

Reflecting on the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting this week, the left-leaning news portal decided to make an explicit statement about their perceived—and desired—reality by creating a ranking of the ‘do-gooders’ and the ‘dirty dozen’ of the world leaders gathered in Davos—and, of course, a Hungarian politician just had to be included in the selection.

Emphasizing the need to resist ‘blackmail’, the resolution, approved by the vast majority of the MEPs, condemns the alleged ‘systematic efforts of the Hungarian government to undermine the EU’s founding values’. The resolution also highlights Hungary’s perceived violations of EU treaties, calling on the European Council to assess whether the country has committed ‘serious and persistent breaches of EU values.’

Leftist MEPs added a last-minute amendment to a resolution up for a vote on the European Parliament floor tomorrow in which they declare their intent to sue the European Commission for approving the release of €10.2 billion of the withheld cohesion funds to Hungary.

During their meeting in Budapest on Tuesday, the leaders of Hungary and Slovakia agreed on the need to rework a European Union plan to provide financial assistance to Ukraine.

The politician from the EP group Greens has been an avid opponent of PM Orbán of Hungary for years. Donald Trump’s victory in the Iowa caucus prompted him to disparage the Hungarian Prime Minister on social media yet again.

In a telephone interview with Hungarian state news agency MTI, Judit Varga, referring to Ukraine’s planned EU integration, highlighted that the Western Balkans countries have been waiting for EU membership for two decades, and called for an approach based on merit in the accession process, avoiding double standards and expedited pathways.

Following the meeting with Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg, Szijjártó disclosed that consultations have begun to ensure the success of Hungary’s rotating EU presidency in the latter half of 2024.

In an interview with public Kossuth radio, Deutsch contended that the Hungarian ‘dollar left’ actively participates Brussels’ illegitimate, coercive behaviour. He referenced former Socialist Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány, who admitted over a year ago in a radio interview that he had supplied fabricated arguments for political blackmail to the Brussels bureaucracy, which served as the basis for initiating legal proceedings against Hungary.

Charles Michel has announced his candidacy for the European Parliament in this year’s elections, leaving his seat at the head of the European Council vacant. This raises the prospect of Viktor Orbán taking up the post, causing panic among the European left.

Péter Szijjártó opined that, given all the elections taking place in the world from the United States to Europe, this year will be the political equivalent of the Super Bowl.

The Biden administration has shifted its strategy in Ukraine; a Ukrainian victory is no longer a priority, and instead, Kyiv will be brought to the negotiating table. If, two years ago, the leaders in Washington and Brussels had heeded their common sense—or better yet, listened to the Hungarians—millions of lives could have been spared.

It didn’t take long before the familiar anti-Hungarian voices of Brussels echoed once again in the New Year. Now, yet again, the goal is to obstruct Hungary’s rotating EU Council presidency.

Secretary Zsigmond expressed concerns over the slow progress in holding representatives accountable for misusing hundreds of thousands of euros. He also highlighted contradictory reports and voting patterns of these representatives against Hungary in the European Parliament,

‘Given these numerous negative trends, it is clear that 2024 stands as a do-or-die moment for European leaders and policymakers to save and turn around the European Union. Achieving such will require making painful decisions. In the short term, the most immediate, visible, and pressing among these is addressing the migrant crisis, including the reality that many migrants, refugees, and illegal immigrants are taking advantage of Europe’s over-generous welfare state.’

Under the scope of the Union’s REPowerEU programme, €779.5 billion have been transferred to Budapest and the amount is now included in the government budget, Finance Minister Mihály Varga announced today. According to Minister for Regional Development Tibor Navracsics, an additional €445 million will also arrive from Brussels soon.

‘What should Hungarians do? The question—and Orbán’s visionary answer—has meaning beyond Hungary, in ways that Americans and other Westerners only dimly recognize now. And it goes back to the prime minister’s 2014 advocacy of “illiberal democracy” for Hungary.’

In several countries of the European Union, the concept of referendums linked to the enlargement of the Union is well known. In 2016, the Netherlands held a referendum on the adoption of the association agreement between Ukraine and the European Union. The majority of voters rejected the agreement, but as it was only an advisory referendum, so the result did not ultimately bind the Dutch government. France’s constitution requires a referendum to be held before any future EU enlargement. I see no reason why Hungary should not be the next country to have such a plebiscite.

While talking to the Hungarian daily Magyar Nemzet, Ákos Bence Gát of the Danube Institute criticized the hectic and unreliable way the withholding and release of funds is ruled on by the EU. He also talked about Ukraine’s potential accession to the Union, which is the main agenda point of the ongoing EU Council meeting.