Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán is copying the policies of former US President Donald Trump and aims to extend them to other EU countries during his presidency of the Council of Europe.
Points of attention
- Orbán is trying to promote policies similar to Trump's doctrine in EU countries during his presidency of the Council of Europe.
- Orbán's position on migration and cultural identity finds support among fundamental European political forces.
- Hungary's presidency of the Council of Europe creates a decisive moment for the EU after elections and changes in leadership.
- Hungary has the opportunity to direct attention to the EU agenda but does not have the right to make critical decisions.
- EU officials express disappointment with Orbán's policies but explain that the presidency will not give Hungary much decision-making power.
Orban seeks to extend a doctrine similar to Trump's policy to EU countries
According to the publication's journalists, until recently, European politicians perceived the Hungarian prime minister as an exile.
At the same time, most European centrist politicians continue to avoid contact with Orbán. Still, his position on many pressing issues, including migration and cultural identity, is gaining support among several key European political forces.
Across Europe, from the Netherlands to neighbouring Slovakia, nationalists dominated recent elections.
The beginning of Hungary's presidency of the EU is a crucial period for the bloc, which includes the presidential elections in the US and the change of the EU leadership after the elections last month, in which far-right parties gained strength, the authors of the article emphasize.
What to expect from Hungary's presidency of the EU Council
It is emphasized that European leaders and diplomats were disappointed by Orbán's policy but are reassured by the fact that the presidency of the EU Council does not give Hungary the right to make key decisions.
At the same time, it will allow Orbán's government to focus on the EU agenda and give it "a megaphone as a voice speaking on behalf of the bloc."
With Trump now in a stronger position after Biden's terrible debate on Thursday, the US candidate will have a kindred spirit in a more prominent role on the other side of the Atlantic. ... Orbán is a rare EU leader who openly calls for Trump's return to the White House, part of a romance that began on the eve of the 2016 presidential election, when Orbán became the bloc's most staunch anti-immigration leader, the newspaper's journalists warn.
According to them, after the beginning of the criminal invasion of the occupation army of the Russian Federation in Ukraine, the Orban government tried to maintain close ties with the Kremlin and Beijing, tried to soften sanctions and blocked the decision to send weapons to Ukraine.
At one point early in the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Orbán to his face that he had to choose whose side he was on.
Hungarian officials insist they are taking the presidency seriously. They want to boost EU expansion into the Western Balkans, and Orbán has said in recent days that he wants to use the presidency to boost the bloc's lagging competitiveness. Officials say they will act as an honest go-between for the president, cautiously offering their own views. But other EU leaders are skeptical about how Orbán will approach the art of compromise, the article says.
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