Hungarian Conservative

‘In the Hungarian leader, the EU faces a new type of Eurosceptic, one who doesn’t want to leave the bloc but instead shape it, putting his stamp on policies from support to Ukraine to the fight against climate change to migration,’ POLITICO wrote in their recently published analysis about PM Orbán’s foreign policy approach to the Brussels leadership.

215 young scholars studying in Hungary as part of a bilateral agreement between Ghana and Hungary have gone without their stipends for six months now after the Ghanaian government has apparently failed to disburse the sums due to the 215 students.

The Milan appellate court also denied the Hungarian authorities’ extradition request, citing that it would damage the alleged violent perp’s ‘mental health’ as one of the reasons for their controversial decision.

Tamás Sulyok visited Poland on the Day of Polish⁠–⁠Hungarian Friendship, marking the extraordinary and long-standing relationship between the two Central European nations.

‘It’s just unarguably the case that whatever it is they accuse someone like Viktor Orbán of doing, the progressive left in America, it is quite clear that these conditions apply in immeasurably more effect to the American system.’

Peter Pellegrini met with his Hungarian counterpart László Kövér, as well as President Tamás Sulyok, and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. He stressed that Hungary and Slovakia both oppose the removal of veto rights of EU Member States, illegal immigration into Europe, and sending troops to Ukraine.

MITEM and the grand theatrical Olympics have opened a new chapter in cultural diplomacy. Entering its second decade, the meeting bears witness to cohesion, mutual respect, interest, the enriching power of diversity.

Former US President Donad Trump has been frequently speaking of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in complementary terms on the campaign trail lately. The two statesmen met once already: in May 2019, Trump hosted Orbán in the White House.

In a rare show of good faith and positivity, US Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman attended a joint exercise of American and Hungarian soldiers in Szentes, Hungary. At the event, he emphasized the importance of the military alliance between the two nations.

All but one EU Member State, Hungary, have condemned Israel’s potential ground invasion of Rafah, scheduled to happen if all hostages are not freed by the start of the Ramadan. This is not the first time the Orbán administration has stood up for Israel.

One hundred programmes are being organized this year to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Hungary and Türkiye. The programmes of the 2024 Hungarian–Turkish cultural season will run concurrently in the two countries for one year.

The deadliest forest fire on record in Chile’s history broke out last Friday, killing over 110 people. Foreign Minister of Hungary Péter Szijjártó has sent an open letter to his Chilean counterpart, expressing sympathies on his country’s behalf.

Citing concerns over the delay of the ratification of Sweden’s NATO accession, approving additional aid to Ukraine, and the Sovereignty Protection Act, Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland has proposed the possibility of the United States imposing sanctions on Hungary as a punishment.

During her meetings, Katalin Novák expressed her support for the EU accession of West Balkan nations, visited the troops of the Hungarian-led EUFOR Althea mission, and discussed Hungary’s family support schemes.

Both Minister of EU Affairs János Bóka and MP and former Minister of Justice Judit Varga have strongly asserted that Hungary will not give in to the EU’s ‘blackmail,’ and will not approve additional funding to Ukraine through a common loan under the threat of additional EU funds being withheld.

US Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman gave two recent interviews to the British press. He criticized Hungary’s foreign policy in both of them, claiming that it was based on ‘fantasy’—Hungarian MP and State Secretary Tamás Menczer has responded to the criticism.

Agriculture Minister István Nagy of Hungary met with his Chinese counterpart, Ma Youxiang, to discuss closer cooperation efforts between the two countries.

Governor Ron DeSantis has often been accused by the left-wing mainstream media in the US of closely emulating Hungary’s PM Viktor Orbán. However, Orbán has always shown his preference for Former President Trump. With DeSantis dropping out, are Viktor Orbán’s ideas out of the race or not?

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.

According to press reports, Giorgia Meloni is in an endeavour to persuade Viktor Orbán to withdraw his veto on the €50 billion EU aid to Ukraine, offering a unique deal in return. Kyiv could soon face severe challenges or even collapse without substantial foreign financial assistance.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has called for the creation of a common European army. Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, the question of how Europe can defend itself against the threats it faces has become increasingly pressing.

Bóka explained that the timing of Sweden’s NATO membership ratification hinges on the pace and efficiency of trust-building between Hungary and Sweden, reassuring Hungarian parliamentary representatives who may have doubts and concerns.

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 European Union is not lacking in politicians with negative views towards Hungary. In this article, we have compiled a list of the most notorious MEPs known for their Hungarophobic stances.

The press release by the US DOS claimed that the newly established Sovereignty Protection Office of Hungary is a tool ‘that can be used to intimidate and punish those with views not shared by the ruling party’ and therefore it is ‘inconsistent with our shared values of democracy’. In response, PM Orbán stated that the US government should stop lecturing Hungary.

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.

Arriving for the two-day EU summit, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary’s position is very clear. ‘When we talk about enlargement, the Hungarian stance states that it is a merit-based, sophisticated, legal procedure,’ he explained.

Talks with Ukraine on possible EU membership ‘right now are absurd, ridiculous, and unserious’, and the government will not support them. Right now no one knows what Ukraine’s accession would entail or how much territory or population would be integrated into the bloc, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in the debate of the ruling Fidesz party’s draft resolution on Ukraine’s accession talks.

Meloni emphasized her familiarity with the views of the Hungarian Prime Minister, which diverge from those she holds concerning Ukraine’s accession to the European Union. However, she noted that, in her opinion, the inflexibility and strictness of the European Commission have led to the Hungarian Prime Minister’s perspectives.