British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on 18 July that the next EPC summit will be held in Hungary this year, and in Albania and Denmark next year.
Vox has broken its regional coalition agreements with the Popular Party (PP) in five regions, something that no other party has ever done in the history of Spanish democracy, as VOX leader Santiago Abascal announced on Thursday.
‘This new coalition (between the EPP, S&D, and Renew) wants to ignore what has been decided by free and sovereign nations that have grown tired of the policies imposed by Brussels. The interests of the voters are being systematically trampled on in a scandalous way,’ Vox MEP Hermann Terstch told Hungarian Conservative in a recent interview.
‘In short, the post-Brexit era and the Conservative majority government have not changed anything in the UK. The British continue to have problems with illegal and massive immigration, problems in the economy, and they still have not regained their much loved and longed for sovereignty. Likewise, the Labour Party did not bother to take up ‘the cultural battle’; they dropped all gender laws and only focused on the economy, albeit unsuccessfully.‘
‘The worst thing that can happen right now in France is the disunity of the right-wing parties, because if they stand united, they really have the best opportunity ever to change the course. It is not going to be an easy task, after a forty-year inaction in which even bringing up the issue of illegal immigration and insecurity was outright branded as extreme right-wing rhetoric. Albeit this is still happening, it is having less and less effect on a large part of the right-wing electorate, as they have got used to the labelling, and now even mock it.’
‘I am convinced that the current leadership in Brussels does not take into account the opinion or expectations of the majority of European people, and we even see that they represent non-European interests in Brussels on key issues, such as illegal migration, the war in Ukraine or the EU’s competitiveness,’ Hungarian Member of the European Parliament Balázs Hidvéghi stated in an interview with Hungarian Conservative.
‘Conservatives are the only parties in Europe that are rising, and the left is afraid. We can be certain that a paradigm shift would wipe out many leftist politicians, and the elites that pay them clearly don’t want that to happen. They want obedient politicians who follow their agenda. On 9 June Conservatives have a mission: the reconquest of our sovereignty, the reconquest of our security, the reconquest of our economy and industry, the reconquest of our agriculture, the reconquest of our identity.’
Since 2013, migration pressure on Europe has become the new normal, and in recent years the situation has once again worsened: 2023 saw the highest number of illegal immigrants reaching Europe since 2016. Due to the worsening security situation in the Sahel region and the economic difficulties afflicting North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia, nearly one million people applied for asylum in the EU.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni believes that the only viable path which takes everyone’s interests into account is to have a debate on how to stop illegal immigration into Europe. ‘The only serious approach involves cooperation with the origin and transit countries,’ she emphasized at a press event in Milan on Tuesday.
‘The gains of the conservative and patriotic renaissance are clear. We are making unthinkable progress. We are advancing in Italy, Hungary, France, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the Czech Republic.’
Hungary can play a key role in potentially warming EU–Türkiye relations. This can be achieved through agenda-setting during Hungary’s presidency of the Council. One such topic could be the modification of the illegal migration prevention deal to tighten regulations and increase financial support to Türkiye.
‘We believe that the Hungarian model is the right one, whereby asylum applications must be made outside the EU and refugees are only allowed to come after proper checks have been carried out. This is so because the Hungarian government holds, in accordance with international law, that refugees are entitled to asylum in the first safe country they reach, not in any, distant country of their preference.’
Supposed historian Michael Beschloss called PM Viktor Orbán of Hungry a ‘brutal dictator’ in reference to his meeting with Former US President Donald Trump. Rod Dreher, the renowned American columnist living in Budapest wrote a satiric open letter to him in response, drawing attention to the absurdity of that statement.
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.
The European Commission proposes starting accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen announced on Tuesday in Strasbourg. Issues being discussed at the European Parliament Plenary also include the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and European security, among others.
In the midst of tensions among the Visegrád Group countries, Viktor Orbán spoke about the potential for a partnership between Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, and Serbia. In what areas could these countries cooperate, and what difficulties might impede such a partnership?
Secretary Mayorkas was impeached for neglecting his responsibility to protect the borders of the United States. He is only the second US Department Secretary to be indicted by the lower chamber of Congress in American history and the first since 1876.
When arguing against stricter immigration laws, some on the left like to appeal to the significance of migration in American history. However, the truth is that there has never been a popular demand for lack of immigration control in the United States.
In the interview, President of the Republic Katalin Novák underscored Hungary’s key role in protecting the EU’s Schengen border, highlighted the Hungarian government’s unique family policy, stressed the importance of starting peace talks to end the war on Ukraine, and reiterated Hungary’s support for Israel.
The conflict most likely broke out between a group of migrants and an organized human smuggler group. It went on for hours into the early morning, terrifying the residents of Horgos. This is actually the second similar incident in just a few weeks at the Serbian-Hungarian border.
Both countries have cited the increased threat of terrorism as the reason for their new, stricter measures on border control.
According to data provided by the Slovak Ministry of the Interior, the number of illegal migrants arriving in Slovakia through the Western Balkans route began to significantly increase in August of last year. From the beginning of this year up until now, nearly 40,000 illegal immigrants have entered the country, which is 11 times more than during the same period last year.
Multiple reports have confirmed that there were a number of incidents at the Serbian-Hungarian border in the past weeks with automatic weapons being fired and brandished by human smugglers.
‘Governments have a duty to their own citizens to maintain the character of the country,’ Tony Abbott, former prime minister of Australia argues. An interview on migration, family policy, foreign relations, and the Russo-Ukrainian war.
The Hungarian foreign minister emphasized that despite all efforts, global terrorism remains more severe than ever, claiming 6,700 lives last year due to various attacks. He opined that one of the reasons for that is that terrorism and illegal migration create a kind of ‘vicious circle’.
The European Commission President was invited by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy to assess the dire situation on the island, brought on by the thousands of migrants coming just in the last few days. The Italian government decided to enact strict new measures to curb illegal immigration.
Groups of 140–180 individuals have been attempting to cross the border fence using ladders in the areas of Ásotthalom and Mórahalom, with human traffickers waiting on the Hungarian side, ready to move those who manage to cross towards the West. ‘The police and border patrol units are engaged in proper combat,’ according to the PM’s Chief Security Advisor György Bakondi.
It appears that the Visegrád Four cooperation is once again revitalising itself along the lines of common interests. The green transition and its impact on industrial investment in Central Europe, European security or illegal migration are issues that have prompted the V4 countries, and the Poles and the Hungarians in particular, to once again join forces.
The PM drew attention to the fact that Hungary spends over two billion euros to protect the Schengen Zone from illegal immigrants. ‘We haven’t received a single cent from Brussels. Why should we pay more? We have to spend all our money on protecting the borders, protecting Europe and Germany,’ Orbán stated.
According to Bence Rétvári, the voluntary quota introduced earlier has proved unsuccessful, so Brussels now wants to forcefully distribute migrants. He added that if Hungary refuses to comply, it may face penalties, referred to as ‘financial contributions’ in the proposal. This would mean that the Hungarian government would have to pay some eight million Hungarian forints per migrant that it is unwilling to accept.
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.