Orbán at EU summit: Every nation must take care of its own security and welfare

Budapest (MTI) – It will only be possible to set Europe right if every nation sees to its own security and welfare, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Saturday in Rome after leaders of European Union member states and its institutions signed a declaration on the bloc’s future.

“If we want a secure Hungary then we must rely on ourselves and we have to make our own security,” Orbán said, adding that if Hungary also wants to develop economically, then “we must do more, and work well and be competitive”.

In remarks reported by Hungarian public television, the prime minister said “no kind of celebratory declaration will change anything”, referring to the document marking the 60th anniversary of the founding Treaty of Rome. “We can only be proud of Europe if we can be proud of our own countries,” he added. Orbán said there was much to be proud of when drawing the balance of the past 60 years in Europe but big question marks also hung over the bloc. “We have reason to feel that we must respond to big challenges.”

He said Hungarian proposals had been incorporated into the document and “from the point of view of the interests of Hungarians, this is a good document”. Orbán referred to passages on the importance of protecting the EU borders and that member states themselves should provide answers to Europe’s problems rather than waiting for the institutions of Brussels to do so.

He emphasised the importance of taking steps against illegal migration and tackling terrorism. Further, he noted a commitment to creating jobs.

“Today, Hungary is the only country in the European Union that has targeted full employment,” the prime minister said, adding that “it is not from benefits that people can expect a higher standard of living and a successful Hungarian economy, but through their own workplaces.”