Orbán introduces new ministers to lawmakers, declares ‘our place is in Europe’

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on Friday introduced his new cabinet to lawmakers in parliament, declaring in his speech that his government would serve the nation but it also recognised that Hungary’s place is in Europe.

“While we serve the nation, our place is in Europe,” he said, adding that European economy’s centre of gravity was “gradually shifting to the east”. He insisted that Hungary and the central European countries made up the fastest growing region within the European Union.

“Back in 1990, Europe was our future, but today we are Europe’s future,” the prime minister said after his ministers were sworn in.

Europe will continue to be threatened by mass migration “for many years to come”, Orbán said, calling for firm protection of the bloc’s borders and for security risks facing the continent to be calmly managed.

Orbán declared:

“New things have to be done.” After an “encouraging first eight years”, however, his government was “only halfway finished” with its work.

“We have drastic changes, serious battles and tough work behind us, but the world stands at the start of a new era that demands an even braver spirit of innovation and even more changes.” The composition of the new government was tailored to meet this challenge, he added.

In addition to technological challenges, Hungary must also confront security threats, the prime minister said.

He said the government was not focused on protecting doctrines but rather “ways of life that have sprung from the Christian doctrine”. “This is why we protect human dignity, family, communities of faith and the nation,” Orbán said.

He reaffirmed his approach to his prime ministerial tenure: he considered the period between 2010 and 2030 to be “a single era”, arguing that a country could only be governed with long-term plans in place.

Orbán said everyone he had asked to serve as a minister shared a passion for Hungary.

“They think the greatest thing in our lives is that we were born Hungarian,”

he said, adding that the members of his political community formed a comradely political community instead of competing with each other.

Throughout Hungary, many hundred people are willing to take the responsibility of leadership in this political community, and there are enough dedicated people to fill the posts of several governments, he said.

Orbán said there was a single yardstick: “a stronger and better performing Hungary”.

Introducing his ministers, Orbán said Interior Minister Sándor Pintér was responsible “for the safety of us all”. He thanked Pintér for having “restored the dignity of the police force”, which he said had been “relentless” in protecting Hungary’s borders.

Of Tibor Benkő, the newly-appointed defence minister, Orbán noted that the minister was promoted from chief of staff of the armed forces. He said Benkő now faced the task of making sure Hungary’s armed forces catch up with the country’s neighbours. “It’s not too late, we can still catch up,” Orbán said, adding that he was convinced that Hungary’s military officers “still have a lot left in them”. Orbán said he had asked Benkő to bring those capacities to the surface.