2023-11-18 21:37:00
Hungary must reject the current model of Europe promoted by Brussels. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said this today at the convention of his ruling Fidesz party. According to Reuters, he added that there is a need to change the European Union rather than leave it, and reiterated that his cabinet does not agree with the EU opening accession talks with Ukraine.
“Our task will also be to correct the (EU’s) mistaken promise to open talks with Ukraine, as Ukraine is now light years away from the European Union,” said Orbán.
Kyiv is seeking membership in the bloc especially after the invasion of Russian troops on its territory last February. Four months after the invasion, the EU granted Ukraine candidate country status, and the European Commission (EC) this month recommended opening accession talks with the country. However, the proposal of the EU executive will have to be unanimously approved by the presidents and prime ministers of all EU countries at their December summit, while Hungary is expected to reject it.
Orbán also stated today that he also wants to fight against the EU’s attempts to settle migrants in Hungary. Budapest has long been opposed to financial aid and the acceptance of migrants without appropriate documents who arrive in the EU, for example by sea, from burdened countries such as Italy. For several years, the European bloc has been trying to agree on a reform of the migration and asylum policy, which was presented by the EC in response to the non-functionality of the current rules for the refugee waves of 2015. A key part of the reform regarding solidarity with the busiest states remains the subject of sharp disputes.
Hungary is emerging from an inflationary crisis, and Prime Minister Orbán this week began an intensive campaign ahead of the European Parliament elections, which are scheduled for June next year, Reuters notes. In his speech today, the prime minister defined himself not only against “the crazy ideas of Brussels bureaucrats, the invasion of migrants, illusions about the war (in Ukraine) and Ukraine’s unpreparedness for EU membership”, but also against “gender propaganda”.
Among other things, Orbán’s government has introduced a law that prohibits the depiction of topics related to sexual and gender minorities (LGBT+) to minors. While the cabinet justifies the norm by trying to protect children, human rights groups call it discriminatory.
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