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Hungary does not support EU counter-tariffs against American products
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said after a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council on Monday that Hungary does not support EU counter-tariffs against American products.
“We certainly do not support a trade war and a tariff war with the United States. We do not want high tariffs, we want low tariffs,” said Szijjártó, according to a statement by his ministry.
“We expect the European Commission to negotiate, but not about imposing new tariffs, not about even higher tariffs, but about how to reduce tariffs for trade between the United States and the European Union,” he added.
Szijjártó said Hungary does not support EU counter-tariffs because they would make American imported products more expensive, meaning they would cause significant price increases for people on the continent. If the list compiled by the EC were accepted, it would immediately mean a price increase of HUF 18bn in Hungary, he added.
Szijjártó said that it has become clear that several member states share a similar position to Hungary.
“It would have been possible to conduct substantive negotiations with the American administration for months, to put serious proposals on the table of the American administration months ago, and to reach an agreement based on them,” said Szijjártó.
The minister said the EU should have reduced import tariffs on the US auto industry from the current 10pc to 2.5pc, so everything that happened could have been avoided.
Szijjártó also mentioned the future of European-Chinese trade cooperation, reiterating that the current leadership of the EC is unfit for its task, as evidenced by the tariffs imposed on the Chinese electric car industry. He called these a good example of how “an ideologically driven economic policy measure” can cause enormous damage.
More news about American-Hungarian relations:
Orban and Szijjarto are clowns who can only complain about the EU. Orban took it upon himself to go to Moscow the negotiate with Putin on the Ukraine war. Well nothing is stopping the Orban from going to Washington to meet Trump or Szijjarto to go and meet with Peter Navarro or Howard Lutnick. They won’t go because they know that if they do they won’t be able to get anything out of their efforts and they will look like the failures they are. The US is listing Hungarian corruption on government procurement in the list of reasons for EU tariffs. Well that’s your negotiation. Get rid of the corruption Fidesz. Well to do that you actually need to get rid of Fidesz – 2026.
This is what I would like to know from our Politicians and Mr. Szijjártó in particular:
Why does Hungary, with all its BFF lovey-dovey fawning and unconditional support for Mr. Trump and MAGA, not get any exception or concession of these tariffs and other measures (ESTA, Tax Treaty, black list)?
You would think our Politicians would have earned this, going above and beyond. Time for some of Mr. Szijjártós famous indignation? I mean, he went down on and for them – again and again. You should get something in return, right?