Hungarian politician: Enlargement ‘in EU’s fundamental interest’

The European Union’s security, economic and political interests firmly hinge on integrating countries of the Western Balkans, a governing lawmaker told a European Parliament committee, arguing that enlargement would make the EU stronger, while each month of delay would enfeeble the bloc.

“Hungary finds it unacceptable that delays to the enlargement process may end up weakening the European Union,” Christian Democratic lawmaker Lőrinc Nacsa told MTI after attending the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET). “In times of war and amid the challenges of migration, the EU accession of Western Balkan countries is our primary interest, also from a security point of view.”

The party’s deputy group leader noted that ten years ago Croatia joined the EU, yet the bloc had shrunk by one member since then, which he called a “shameful record”.

Noting that he was among delegates from the foreign affairs committees of national parliaments attending the AFET meeting on Tuesday, he said the Hungarian parliament had sent experts to aid countries aspiring the join the bloc in fulfilling the necessary accession criteria while supporting their parliaments through various programmes both in the eastern and southern regions of Europe.

Nacsa said Hungary kept the issue of enlargement firmly on the EU’s agenda while promoting the Schengen accession of non-EU-member countries. Quickening the enlargement process and striving to prevent any further delays to Western Balkan integration were high Hungarian priorities, he added.

Fidesz MEP Gál Kinga in a statement criticised the annual report on Bosnia-Herzegovina approved by the EP’s foreign affairs committee at the meeting, saying that like most EP reports on Western Balkan countries, it rode roughshod over the complex problems of the region, and such reports only served to sharpen conflicts and instability there.

The Fidesz EP group leader accused “left liberals” of using the report to mount an ideologically based attack against Olivér Várhelyi, the commissioner for enlargement, which she said was “unacceptable”.

It “incomprehensible”, she added, that the report “also openly attacks Hungarian companies”, blaming Momentum Movement MEP Katalin Cseh for this. “It’s shocking that a Hungarian left-wing representative has attacked Hungarian companies operating in Bosnia-Herzegovina … baselessly confusing them with Chinese companies,” Gal said.

Source: MTI

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3 Comments

Derrick Van der Lisle says:

29/06/2023 at 10:34

I am still waiting for someone to explain to me why it is in Hungary’s best interest to be part of the European Union and encourage others to join the EU also? Hungary is treated like the red headed step child by Brussels and the Soro’s puppets in Brussels. If I were Hungary I would seriously be considering withdrawing from the EU.
A United States of Europe is not a good idea. Do we not see that the United States of America is on the verge of a civil war or balkanization. Like minded peoples can get along in a union but diverse groups like we see in Europe have never gotten along and trying to get them together is why we see so many problems growing here in Hungary.
Norbert says:

29/06/2023 at 14:26

I feel like a broken record: meet the Copenhagen criteria – and for Members, continue adhering to them!

https://european-union.europa.eu/principles-countries-history/joining-eu_en

The first step is for the country to meet the key criteria for accession. These were mainly defined at the European Council in Copenhagen in 1993 and are hence referred to as ‘Copenhagen criteria’. Countries wishing to join need to have:

stable institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities;
a functioning market economy and the capacity to cope with competition and market forces in the EU;
the ability to take on and implement effectively the obligations of membership, including adherence to the aims of political, economic and monetary union.
The EU also needs to be able to integrate new members.

In the case of the countries of the Western Balkans additional conditions for membership, were set out in the so-called ‘Stabilisation and Association process’, mostly relating to regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations.

https://neighbourhood-enlargement.ec.europa.eu/enlargement-policy/conditions-membership_en

@Derrick – you may want to go back and read in detail what we signed up for when we joined. You will find we ceded quite a bit of sovereignty to join the EU club, accessing the benefits in return.

Re leaving the EU – the Brits did! Could you please list a couple of Brexit benefits that have manifested themselves, to date?
Derrick Van der Lisle says:

29/06/2023 at 19:49

@Norbert at your request 1)No more listening to whiny Nigel Farage in the EU Parliament. 2) The UK voting to leave was a shock to Brussels that they were silently told would never happen.

Personally all of the eastern European nations should leave except Poland, the Poles won’t be happy until they once again return to being a client state of Moscow. The idiots governing Poland are doing everything they can to provoke Russia and I fear for all Europeans what is going to happen if that Duda clown and Moraweicki keep poking the bear. We are very close to finding out I am afraid, possibly before September.