Hungarian Conservative

During the Hungarian presidency, the debate must continue on whether it is preserving or eliminating connectivity that makes the EU stronger and more competitive, János Bóka emphasized in his lecture at the event marking the fifth anniversary of the establishment of the Hungarian Youth Association.

In his regular Friday morning interview, the Prime Minister stated that there was ‘no money in the world’ that would get Hungary to allow migrants into Hungary and ‘take the country away from us.’

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 her welcoming speech at the reception of the Ambassadors accredited to Hungary, President Novák addressed the global challenges facing our world, the future of Europe, and Hungary’s role on the international stage.

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.

The Hungarian state acquired the former Ministry of Finance building for 10 million euros in 2021, below the appraised value according to the valuation. Due to its location and high prestige, the actual value of the property is practically priceless.

It seems that the majority of MEPs are aware of the legal and political limitations of the options for action outlined in the Meijers Committee’s analysis, but are committed to continuing to exert political pressure on Hungary and Poland in the coming months.

The third day of Tusványos remained as eventful as the previous one, with many prominent Hungarian government officials taking the opportunity to share their thoughts on stage. What follows is a brief recap of the most important points they made.

Gergely Gulyás announced on Monday, 3 July that János Bóka will serve as Minister responsible for European Union affairs in the government from 1 August.

She is resigning to take an active part in the campaign in the 2024 European Parliamentary election. She is also rumoured to be leading the Fidesz EP list, although that is yet to be confirmed. The minister believes that she has fulfilled all the tasks she took on when she was appointed.

Alexander De Croo stated that depriving Hungary the presidency would not only be a bad idea, but it would prove counterproductive as well.

Ákos Bence Gát told Hungarian daily Magyar Nemzet that Hungary raised the issue of creating a rule of law instrument during its presidency, which would ensure that the rule of law criteria, for which member states are held accountable, are also upheld within EU institutions. This caused panic.

MEP Rob Roos and political pundit Eva Vlaardingerbroek, both from the Netherlands, took to Twitter to defend Hungary and advocate for its upcoming EU Council presidency.

While officially, the conference’s main agenda point was the shadow rapporteurs on the current state of the rule of law in Hungary, more time was devoted to Hungary’s Council of the EU presidency set to happen in 2024, a concept none of the MEPs was thrilled about. The ongoing negotiations about releasing the frozen EU funds were often talked about as well.

According to Brussels sources, the Hungarian government’s resistance was in connection with concerns over migration-related policies. However, it may be the case that the Hungarian veto is linked to the almost decade-long dispute with Oslo over the Norwegian Fund.

In her remarks, Minister Varga paraphrased the words of Robert Schuman, one of the founding fathers of the European Union, who said that Europe will either be Christian or not be at all.

Last week’s invitation of the French President shows that despite Hungary having disputes with the European Union and the EU funds due to our country are being withheld, the Hungarian Prime Minister is not at all an isolated actor in European political life.