EU proposal to scrap unanimity requirement for foreign policy decisions ‘dangerous’, says Hungarian FM Szijjártó
A new European Union proposal under which the bloc’s foreign policy decisions would no longer require unanimous support from member states is “dangerous” from Hungary’s perspective and “completely goes against” the EU treaties, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said after meeting his EU counterparts in Luxembourg on Monday.
The proposal “being forced on the bloc by the liberal mainstream governments and Brussels itself” violates EU rules which say the union’s foreign policy decisions require unanimous consent from member states, Szijjártó said in a video message.
Under the new plan, the EU could enact foreign policy decisions with a simple majority vote, he said. The new system would serve to deprive member states that do not belong to the “liberal mainstream” of their right to enforce their own interests when deciding on foreign policy measures, Szijjártó insisted.
Hungary believes that changing this rule would be “harmful and unfair”, the minister said, arguing that any negative effects of a foreign policy decision would also affect member states whose positions were not taken into consideration when the decision was issued.
“This is an act of revenge against us for blocking the EU’s unified position in support of the UN’s global migration compact,” he said.
The EU wanted all member states to back the UN compact but Hungary refused and it will continue to refuse to support migration, Szijjarto said. The country reserves itself the right to act in accordance with its own interests within international organisations, he added.
Hungary, he said, was not alone in its opposition to the proposal, saying that several other member states were also against “forcing the proposal through”.
Concerning the Western Balkans, the minister said it had become clear that the EU was “on the back foot” in the “competition for the region”.
Europe’s “slowness” has allowed the United States, Russia and China to take the initiative to make gains in the region, Szijjártó said, adding that this was against Hungary’s interests. He also urged the bloc to speed up the process of Serbia’s EU integration.
As regards the situation in Belarus, Szijjártó said that in spite of the recent expulsion of the Polish and Lithuanian ambassadors from the country, it was important for the EU to maintain communication with Minsk. He said the EU could include Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on a new list of sanctioned officials from the country.
The EU is also planning to impose sanctions on a new list of Russian officials over the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, he said.
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Source: MTI
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6 Comments
When the EU will have scrapped the absurd unanimity principle, which makes it possible for a minority to continously block and blackmail the majority, finally Mr. Szijjarto will realize that after all his shoes are not as big as his own ego. In fact, they are very small.
The question I would like to ask him is: why should the EU maintain the unanimity rule if it is something you would never even remotely think of implementing in Hungary? Even the new constitution, the most important code of Law of the state, what should guarantee everyone’s rights regardless of political orientation, was passed by Fidesz simply and only by the force of majority.
Fidesz politicians are in no position to lecture the others.
@Mario,
Now you set a new Ultimate Dumb Low. You haven’t got a friggin clue on how the constitution passed or who passed it. BLACKMAIL? It’s the EU that are changing the rules like any normal LIBTARD organizations would. Look at the US, ‘Democrats’ – Hey lets pack the supreme courts if we dont get our way!
How shocking! The UN gives the EU dictatorship over other nations borders and their immigration policies. Of course this is in spite of so many EU nations reconsidering their own immigration policies after the immigration “tidal wave” not so long ago. The rest of the EU doesn’t want them either, they just issue flowering words and use Hungary as the evil scapegoat interfering with thousands and thousands of Soros little paid invaders.
Vedo, the 2011 Constitution was voted by Fidesz and its so called “christian-democratic” allies.
Even Jobbik rejected it. Not to speak of the others. So, purely and simply by force of majority and without even a referendum to give people the chance to somehow make it at least look legitimate.
Do your homework, before posting incorrect comments.
P.s. I suspect you never even bothered to read the charta and its amendments.
P.s. just to give an idea about the absurdity of the unanimity law mr. szijjarto is defending:
doing the comparison and proportions of surface and population between EU and USA, that Hungary has power to veto some ( luckily not all ) of the EU’s majority’s decision is like if the state of Minnesota were allowed to do the same in the U.S. And, add to this, unlike the U.S. the E.U, is not even a federation.
It simply does not make sense.
If Szijjártó had an ingrown toenail he would blame the ‘liberal mainstream’ or immigration.