Europe

Hungarian FM: Hungary ‘values-based, pro-peace’ stance appreciated worldwide

Szijjártó UN

Hungary’s “values-based, pro-peace, honest” stance, which doesn’t aim to cater to the international liberal mainstream, is greatly appreciated worldwide in countries outside Europe, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in New York on Monday.

Speaking on the evening of the first day of the United Nations General Assembly, Szijjártó said he had used the gathering of delegations from nearly 200 countries to discuss issues mainly with foreign ministers of non-European countries.

He also attended an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers focusing mainly on the Sahel, where recent conflicts are threatening to spill over to other regions, the ministry said.

Instability, he said, led to stronger waves of migration, and since Europe already faced a serious security risks from the east, another threat from the south could have severe consequences, he said.

Szijjártó said that in his meetings with several Asian, Latin American and African counterparts it had become clear that Hungary’s position rooted in “honesty and the representation of national interests” was greatly appreciated outside Europe, as it did not kowtow to the international liberal mainstream or seek “pats on the back”, he said.

The world, he said, yearned for an end to the war. While the conflict was so far regional, its effects were global, he added.

Szijjártó said the international community was all the more understanding of Hungary’s stance as Hungarians were also losing their lives in the war, and so the government’s only morally justifiable position was to broker peace as soon as possible to save lives.

In talks with the leaders of Sierra Leone and Bangladesh, the leaders agreed that Hungary will offer 50 scholarships to students of each country. Hungary and Bangladesh also aim to strengthen economic ties, including cooperation opportunities in the nuclear industry, as the two countries are building similar power plants, he said.

Szijjártó and his Uzbek counterpart agreed to continue cooperating in the Ogranization of Turkic States, which set up its Drought Prevention Institute in Budapest in appreciation of Hungary’s water management technologies, he said.

Exports to Malaysia could also grow thanks to a recent agriculture agreement, he said.

At the meeting with Ecuador’s foreign minister, “it felt especially good to talk about our shared Christian values and traditions”, especially since Quito is slated to host the International Eucharistic Congress which was held in Budapest last year.

“We have held important talks … and this is only the first day,” Szijjártó said.

Fidesz: Hungary will not support Ukraine’s EU integration until…

judit varga in madrid

Hungary will not support Ukraine’s European integration until Kyiv guarantees the rights of the Hungarian minority living there, the head of the Hungarian parliament’s committee for EU affairs said in Madrid on Monday.

“We unequivocally support Ukraine’s European integration, but Ukraine received a strict list of conditions when it was granted candidate status,” Judit Varga told MTI after the Conference of parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs (COSAC). The rights of Hungarians living in Ukraine must be restored to at least the level it was is 2015, she said.

“Developments lately, however, are pointing to [Hungarians in Ukraine] being completely stripped of their rights,” she said.

The European Commission will publish a report in October serving as a baseline for member states’ decision on the matter, she said. According to an opinion published by the Venice Commission, the status of Hungarian minorities in Ukraine “could be regulated with a simple amendment,” she said.

Regarding the bloc’s enlargement, Varga told the conference that Hungary was a long-standing champion of the EU’s integration of the Western Balkans. “It is very important that we offer a real outlook. We can only accept an enlargement procedure based on merit,” she said.

The integration process should respect national integrity and subsidiarity, she said, noting that Serbia and other countries in the region have been negotiating with the EU for over a decade. The focus in the east was on Ukraine and Moldova, she said, yet Georgia also deserved an outlook on joining the EU.

Varga also praised Spain’s programme for the EU presidency, calling it a “balanced programme up to handling current challenges facing the EU.” Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares highlighted demographic issues, a priority for Hungary too, she said.

Demographic challenges will be one of the focal points of the Hungarian presidency in the second half of 2024, and the government highlight competitiveness when approaching it, she said. The government aims to “make its family policy measures more popular” during the presidency, she added.

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Hungary partners with America First Policy Institute to uncover causes of illegal migration

Migration refugee camp EU migration pact

Illegal mass migration is being organised by the same players in Europe and the United States using the same set of tools, Miklós Szánthó, head of the Center for Fundamental Rights, said in Washington, DC on Wednesday after reaching an agreement with the America First Policy Institute.

The Hungarian think-tank and AFPI have agreed to draw up a package of political proposals aimed at uncovering the causes of illegal migration, identifying those promoting it and presenting the political, ideological and cultural background of the means they use.

The challenges posed by illegal migration serve as common ground, just as it has brought Hungarian and American conservatives together in thinking that the nation should come first, Szánthó told the “No Borders, No Nation” roundtable discussion held at the Hungarian embassy.

Szánthó outlined the ongoing legal debates on migration in Europe, emphasising that immigration laws are national competencies under European Union law. He said physical barriers on the border and “legal barriers” in the form of laws were both important elements of border protection.

AFPI executive director and former acting US secretary of homeland security Chad Wolf said that immigrants to the US were no longer coming from just Latin America, but migrants from 150 countries were now showing up at the Mexican border. The authorities register some 170,000-200,000 illegal entrants a month, but estimates say that another 70,000-80,000 people cross the border without any kind of registration, he said.

PM Viktor Orbán announces “programme 2.0” for Hungary

Viktor Orbán

Orbán said “the mindset” of a community was something that defined the future. He added, however, that the western way of thinking prevented the Europeans from being able to identify the most important challenge facing them which he said was demography.

He said that instead of addressing the issue of demography, politicians were focusing their attention on how to enforce carbon quotas in the economy and gender quotas in society.

“Europe is acting out of fear and fear turns us into defeatists. We say there is no future which thus will become a self-fulfilling prophecy,” Orbán said.

Orbán in his address called Hungary “an incubator house” of conservative policies which he said covered such areas as a worked-based economy, a modern cooperation of state and church and a patriotic education policy.

Speaking about Hungary’s demographic policy, the prime minister listed five goals. Those include promoting the advantages of raising children, government incentives supporting home-building, giving mothers priority “as the pillars of family policy”, turning the entire country’s operation into a family-friendly direction and protecting families with laws. Speaking about the achievements of his government that took power in 2010, Orbán noted that the per capita income of families raising a child had doubled and that of families raising more children had tripled. He said that a government subsidy scheme had helped every fifth family to buy a new home. Among the family support measures, he noted the personal income exemption for mothers under 30 and the personal income tax exemption for mothers with four children. The personal income tax exemption will be extended to families with three children, he said.

“We would normally not admit it, but in Hungary women keep the families together,” Orbán said and praised women for their achievements. He said the most important teaching of Hungarian family policy is that “if you want a future for your country, you must support mothers”. Obárn said that Hungary’s constitution protected the institution of marriage as a union based on a voluntary decision between a man and a woman, as well as the family which forms the basis for the survival of the nation.

The present first phase of Hungary’s family policy is concluded, now the next phase can begin, Orbán said.

“We have earned a lot of appreciation for what we have done so far, but we consider this to be insufficient, so we must move on,” he said.

Orbán said that “we have no chance to convince the present progressive, liberal elites . we must push them aside”. The post-liberal era replacing progressive liberalism “is not going to introduce itself, somebody will have to do it,” he added.

“And who is going to do that if not us?” Such a change would require conservative pro-family forces to take power in as many European countries as possible, the prime minister said.

Orbán said that “we have everything to turn the balance of power to our advantage” at the European Parliament elections next year.

“In the meantime, we, Hungarians have to do our homework and draft ‘programme 2.0’ of Hungarian family policy,” the prime minister said.

PM Viktor Orbán says the liberal elite must be pushed aside

Orbán VIktor

Hungary is the most steadfast and vocal proponent of the cause of families and demographics in European politics, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told the 5th Budapest Demographic Summit on Thursday.

Orbán said the Hungarian government was preparing to draft the country’s “family policy 2.0”, and called on participants to “turn European family policy around together.”

Liberals’ attacks against Hungary for its pro-family, conservative and patriotic policies are in vain, “that only make us tougher – there will be no change,” Orbán said.

Orbán welcomed attendees, saying that the large number of visitors showed “the matter of families and children moves people everywhere in the world.”

Since the last summit two years ago, “the world has changed, and we now live in the shadow of war,” he said.

At the same time, he welcomed that right-wing parties and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni won the elections in Italy. “We thought Italy would never have a patriotic, family-loving, Christian government again.”

Orbán agreed with Meloni that Europe’s future was in families, and that “it is important for children to have a father and a mother.”

He said Italy and Hungary were both the “homeland of freedom fighters”. “Freedom without authority descends into chaos, and authority without freedom becomes authoritarianism,” he added.

Orbán also greeted the Chairman of the Azeri parliament, the Serbian president of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Bulgarian president.

Bulgarian President Rumen Radev is the “guarantee for stability in Bulgaria”, an important ally of Hungary in the fight against illegal migration and in protecting energy security, he said.

Orbán said Europe was led by a progressive liberal elite “busy with all kinds of nonsense” instead of important European issues, such as the future of the continent’s demography.

He cited a survey of the Matthias Corvinus Collegium, which said that European surveys were biased towards “the fears of the progressive political elite” and did nothing to probe the real concerns of Europeans.

“This is the most worrying development in the West in the past 70 years,” he said. Leaders may have “no idea of the real problems of real life” in a dictatorship, but that is unimmaginable in a western democracy, he added.

European citizens want to be able to start families in safe homes, to raise their children in peace and security. These are “demographic issues, which continue to be far down on the agenda in European politics.”

Orbán said the root of that phenomenon was that liberals had “hacked” the political life in the West.

Western political life, “the discourse, the outlook, the way of thinking, the interpretation framework of how the world works,” has been hacked by the liberals in two steps, he said. The first step was spreading the view that the individual was the most important thing in the world. “They see dictators in everyone who sets boundaries to their individual wishes,” he said.

Those boundaries, however, are also railguides, he said. The boundaries of family life “are essential for freedom; freedom requires at least two people, one person alone is not free but lonely.”

Liberals also tried to “hack” European life by “spreading strategic fears of the future”, the prime minister said. “Liberals strive to keep irrational fears from the future on the agenda, and to magnify them,” he said.

“Liberals expect people to live submitting all their actions to an impending apocalypse,” he said.

Fidesz MEP: EU decisions harmful for European citizens

european union eu flag hungary

The European Union’s latest decisions are harming the bloc and European citizens, an MEP of ruling Fidesz said on Wednesday.

Contrary to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s “lofty statements” in her State of the European Union speech on Wednesday, “bad decisions” like the sanctions on Russia do not bring help or peace in Ukraine, but seriously contribute to the deterioration of the European economy and competitiveness, to rising prices, inflation and uncertainty, Balázs Hidvéghi told Hungarian journalists.

Hidvéghi: “Ursula von der Leyen will soon deliver her annual success propaganda on the state of the Union. And I will confront her with the reality:”

Meanwhile, Hidvéghi insisted the EC and the European Parliament were “complicit” in an “ideological jihad” against conservative, nationalist, Christian Democratic governments and states.

“Hungary is being attacked because we have said no to sanctions, illegal migration, and reject LGBTQ propaganda,” he said.

Recently, the EU has also “blackmailed Hungary by withholding monies the country is entitled to, using ever-changing lies and manufactured conditions”, Hidvéghi said.

Meanwhile, Hidvéghi said the last months had seen “one of the gravest corruption scandals in Brussels”. Von der Leyen’s handling of the coronavirus vaccine purchases was also “outrageous”, he insisted. “It is unacceptable that decisions on business deals worth multi-billions should be made without transparency and accountability,” he said.

Hungary is working to strengthen national political forces that respect European treaties and values, “that see the EU as a cooperation of strong member states, understand realities and are capable of deciding on and representing Europe’s strategic interests,” he said.

Regarding the EU’s long-delayed migration and asylum pact, Hidvéghi said that contrary to what von der Leyen said in her keynote address earlier in the day, “an agreement was not in sight”. “Migration is growing, people smuggling is thriving, the issue has not yet been resolved and Brussels is yet to make the right decisions,” he said.

Meanwhile, “Hungary is still waiting to receive EU contributions to the construction costs of its border fence”, Hidvéghi said, arguing that Hungary was protecting a border that is also an EU border. “We have stopped more than one million illegal migrants on the border in the past years. At the very least, the EU should tolerate and appreciate that,” he said.

Hungary also has a vested interest in the EU’s enlargement, especially with the Western Balkans, he said.

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Ruling party Fidesz: Pro-war Brussels elite made infuriating and bad decisions

European Commission Brussels member states

The ruling Fidesz-Christian Democrat alliance will hold a parliamentary group meeting in Esztergom, in northern Hungary, next Wednesday and Thursday, at the start of the autumn session of parliament, Fidesz’s group leader has said.

“The Brussels elite has made infuriating and bad decisions in the recent period,” Máté Kocsis said in a post on Facebook. “It endangers Europe’s security with its pro-war stance, its flawed sanctions have triggered an energy crisis and an economic slowdown, which is why a change is needed in next year’s European Parliament elections.”

“Instead of pro-war Brussels leadership we want a pro-peace leadership, and they must be prevented from weakening the European economy with their flawed sanctions,” Kocsis said.

“Peace must be created at Europe’s borders and we must build a successful European economy which cooperates with all of the world’s economic regions,” he added.

The Brussels leadership’s job is not to “force gender propaganda and migration” but to represent the European people, Kocsis said. He called for protecting the common borders and families, and eliminating “Brussels’s double standards”.

This change in Brussels cannot be achieved without a strong and successful right wing, he said, stressing the need for Hungary’s ruling parties to cooperate with forces that want change in Europe. Meanwhile, the politicians of the domestic left “financed from abroad” must be defeated and the country’s sovereignty protected, Kocsis said.

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Can Hungary have more capitals? Debrecen could beat Budapest

Debrecen

Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, recently said that he wants to make Debrecen Hungary’s second capital. A country with two capitals would not be unprecedented.

Development of Debrecen

“We have a clear objective to have at least one more city in the country that has a significant, even cross-border, gravitational potential,” Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, told haon.hu.

The minister said that Debrecen is envisioned as a second capital city. This city, which is outstanding economically, socially, civically, culturally and in sports, is unique not only in Hungary but also in Central Europe. With its infrastructure, population, educational opportunities and industry, Debrecen has established itself as a leader in Central and Eastern Europe.

János Lázár also believes it is important for Debrecen to function as a kind of second capital. The Minister of Construction and Transport recently presented the investment plans for the next five years. These include the creation of an economic zone in the triangle of Debrecen, Nyíregyháza and Miskolc. This will make Debrecen the capital of the countryside, making it the second capital of Hungary.

It would not be unprecedented

Magyar Nemzet notes that it would not be the first time in the world history that a country has had more than one centres. There are several arguments in favour of the Hajdú-Bihar county seat being the most suitable for this position.

Debrecen is home to 200,000 people, making it the second largest city in Hungary, ahead of Szeged. Debrecen’s increasingly dynamic region is strengthened by the city’s booming economy.

Thanks to investment by large companies, Mayor László Papp estimated in the spring that Debrecen’s share of the country’s industrial output could soar to 16% by 2030, up from 2.8% in 2022.

If we look at Hungarian history, Debrecen has already proven itself. In 1849, the government fighting the Austrian emperor temporarily moved its headquarters to Debrecen.

As we have mentioned before, Hungary having two centres would not be an unprecedented case. If we take only Europe, the capital, Amsterdam, is the largest and most populous city in the Netherlands. But the seat of government and justice is an hour’s drive away in Hague.

Especially in large countries, multiple centres are a well-known phenomenon. In the United States, New York is the financial centre alongside Washington. In Germany, Frankfurt is the financial centre, not the capital Berlin.

In India, the capital is New Delhi and the huge commercial centre is Mumbai. In Israel, Jerusalem is bigger than the capital Tel Aviv, in Australia Canberra dwarfs Sydney, while in Brazil the relationship between Sao Paulo and Brazil is the same.

Speaker of Hungarian parliament: Member states no longer able to control EU bureaucracy

László Kövér

Member states can no longer control the EU bureaucracy, which is “spreading like a cancerous tumour”, Speaker of Parliament Laszlo Kövér said in an interview published in weekly Mandiner on Thursday.

On the matter of Sweden’s NATO accession, Kövér confirmed it was supported by both the government and President Katalin Novák. “If it were not so, its ratification would not be on Parliament’s table,” he said. However, ruling Fidesz-KDNP are a living political community, and its members can have different opinions, he added. “Many of us in the parliamentary group think it would be worthwhile to wait with the decision, he said.

Kövér said while Hungary was watching the dispute that Turkiye, which has the second strongest army in NATO, was having with Sweden, the government had not offered to adapt its position to theirs, and the Turks had not even hinted that they had any expectations from us on the matter.

He said the accession of two traditionally neutral countries, Finland and Sweden, is an issue that could have been reason for a more comprehensive, in-depth discussion. This does not actually strengthen, but weakens the security of Europe as it increases the contact surface between Russia and NATO, he added.

Kövér noted that in Hungary a referendum had been held on NATO accession, whereas in the two northern countries people had not been consulted on the matter.

He emphasised that NATO membership was a priority national interest for Hungary after the system change, and for now, he “does not consider it a historical mistake”. He reiterated that Hungary was not waiting for Turkiye’s decision concerning Sweden. “The sovereign parliament of a sovereign country will decide when it sees fit,” he added.

Commenting on the fact that leaders of Eastern states came to Budapest as guests for the celebration of the founding of the state on Aug 20, Kövér said the national holiday coincided with the first full competition day of the World Athletics Championships, and “we also hosted many of our Central European friends”. State leaders were here whose participation in the energy supply of Hungary, Central Europe and Europe will be essential in the future, he said.

Kövér emphasised that Hungary is part of Western Christian culture, “we entered Europe and its political institutional system with the founding of the Christian state”. This is also part of our national culture, and now those who reject this ideological and moral basis of Europe want to force us to make an exclusive choice in the political and economic sense.

He also noted that Hungary, a country which has always been at the crossroads of imperial aspirations, can also be a kind of mediating link culturally. “Why shouldn’t there be value in this, why shouldn’t Hungary be one of the bridges that connect the West in the traditional sense with the diverse East,” he added.

On the issue of the war in Ukraine, Kövér said he saw no real difference between the positions of the government and that of the president. He pointed out that similarly to government statements, President Novák spoke primarily about peace, which in itself distinguishes her and Hungary from politicians from all other allied European and NATO member states.

No one can win, this war has already been lost by everyone, Kövér said, with the exception of the United States, or rather, the military, energy and financial lobby dominating there, he said.

“We always consider Hungarian interests and choose who we negotiate with, what we discuss and with what purpose accordingly”, he said. “We do not look for enemies, and we are happier with a fair partner than a false friend whose embrace is suffocating”, he added.

Concerning Polish suggestions questioning Hungary’s actual dependence on Russian energy, Kövér said “we should not give in to the hysteria-mongers who want to undermine Hungarian-Polish friendship.”

On US-Hungarian ties, he said it was not relations between Hungary and the United States, but political relations between the two governments that are at rock bottom. In terms of the defence and military cooperation, “we are doing our job as a NATO member”. In economic terms, the US government has taken one or two steps that worsen bilateral relations but US companies operating in Hungary feel comfortable here, he added.

Kövér said that when Donald Trump was president, political relations were perhaps better than ever. He expressed hope that sooner or later there would be another change in the administration in Washington and things would “get back to normal”.

European Union

“However, there have been developments and trends over the past one or two years that go against and jeopardise the original objectives,” he said.

Kövér said “it had practically paralysed Europe that the system of institutions established originally with the aim to guarantee cooperation had turned ‘as a Golem’ against its creators, the member states.”

“The member states today cannot keep control over the bureaucracy which is spreading like a tumorous cell.”

In connection with EU funds Hungary is entitled to, the house speaker said the government had done even more than what it could have done without harming “the honour of Hungarian constitutionality”.

The government, however, has a duty towards Hungarians, which is to make reasonable compromises and achieve that “the Brussels bureaucracy run out of arguments as to why it wants to reduce Hungary’s room for manoeuvre through financial means”. “They want to intervene in [Hungary’s] political affairs through withholding funding and even expect us to feel ashamed because of that,” said Kövér , adding that what Brussels had communicated had nothing to do with reality.

Speaking about the European Parliament, the house speaker said he would be “satisfied” if his party, ruling Fidesz, could return to the European People’s Party (EPP). However, he called that scenario “impossible”, saying that Fidesz was still in the same place in politics where it had been ten to twenty years ago and it was “the so-called centre right” that had shifted to the left. Kövér said he saw a right-wing turnaround possible in the EP only if the EPP and its major members such as the CDU-CSU make “a 90 degree turn back”. He, however, anticipated a right-wing shift within the EP with the strengthening of the European Conservatives and Reformists and the Identity and Democracy party groups. Kövér called the scenario that right-wing parties could form a majority in the EP “unrealistic at the moment”.

Hungary supports strengthening OSCE role in peace making

eu european union hungary flag priority areas

Hungary supports strengthening the role of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which acts as the last channel for East-West dialogue, in peacebuilding, the foreign minister said in Budapest on Thursday.

At a joint press conference with Bujar Osmani, the foreign minister of North Macedonia, who currently holds the rotating chairmanship of the OSCE, Péter Szijjártó said maintaining dialogue between the parties was the only way that could lead to peace in Ukraine, according to a foreign ministry statement.

“We, Hungarians, who live here in the neighbourhood of war, want peace as soon as possible,” he said.

“Every single day that is spent in war brings more deaths and more destruction. The propaganda that better conditions for a peace agreement can be won on the battlefield is false. The conditions for peace negotiations are much better today than they will be tomorrow, and today they are much worse than they were yesterday,” he said.

“Therefore, the Hungarian government strongly supports the North Macedonian presidency so that the OSCE can continue to serve as a communication channel between East and West, Russia and the western half of Europe”.

Szijjártó urged the initiation of genuine negotiations on the EU accession of Albania and North Macedonia. He argued that Europe was facing extraordinary economic and security challenges, therefore, stability and peace in the Western Balkans he said had never been more important.

Today, the EU has more interest in enlargement than the Western Balkans, he said, because the bloc is unfortunately weak and is getting weaker. “We can only reverse this if the European Union begins to grow, because if it becomes larger, it will also be stronger, and this can only happen through enlargement,” he said.

He said the reason for the failure of further enlargement so far was that neither Brussels nor some of the member states were honest on this matter, because in public they support the process, but behind closed doors they make more skeptical statements.

“That is why we consider it unacceptable that the president of the European Council wants to postpone the date of admitting new members until 2030,” he said.

The minister asked what the community wants to do during these seven years. “If NATO, which is a defense alliance, was able to include three Western Balkan countries, I think the European Union should be able to follow suit,” he said.

“At every meeting of the foreign affairs council, I listen to the lamentations of others that the Russians, the Turks, and I don’t know who else are gaining ground for themselves in the Western Balkans. It would be easy to go against this. For example, by admitting them to the European Union,” he argued.

Answering questions, Szijjártó confirmed that the government did intend to buy Budapest Airport and that negotiations were under way, but it would be too early to disclose details. He said the ownership of the country’s largest airport was a strategic question.

On the ratification of Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership, he said it was a legitimate question for debate that the admission of the two countries would make the border between Russia and NATO several hundred kilometres longer, but nevertheless the government had submitted a proposal to parliament for approval of the ratification.

Hungarian Audit Office working independently of political pressure, says head

hungarian audit office

Hungary’s Audit Office (ÁSZ) was fully revamped during the past year, and its renewed structure and approach allows it to fulfill its constitutional role more effectively and to protect the lawful use of EU and government funds, ÁSZ head László Windisch said on Tuesday.

Commenting on a report recently presented to the European Parliament based on a review of the EP’s budgetary control committee in May, Windisch noted that the committee was not interested in ÁSZ’s work at the time but focused on practices under an earlier leadership. They “wanted to hear generic, political statements on public purchases and the accumulation of wealth of specific people” rather than the methodology and approach used in current reviews, Windisch said.

ÁSZ stood by its principle to refrain from assessing the work of the previous leadership, he said.

Windisch said it was “surprising and an unprecendented instance of political pressure” that the opposition Democratic Coalition, which was at the time under ÁSZ review, “mounted a personal attack against the head of ÁSZ, with the aim of influencing MEPs and applying political pressure”.

The committee’s report “suits the hearings well, which seemed political theatre”, Windisch said. “The report is clearly a political statement, prepared without any consideration of facts,” he said.

Windisch noted that three of the four members of the delegation had earlier voted in favour of an “absurd EP resolution which called for the removal of heads of Hungary’s independent, constitutional institutions … based solely on a 2017 article expressing the private opinions of two leaders of Transparency International Hungary,” he said.

ÁSZ rejects all attempts to curb its independence and will continue to conduct its reviews impartially and according to the highest professional standards, he said.

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Beautiful Budapest park represents Hungary in Green Cities Europe contest! – PHOTOS

Pünkösdfürdő Park budapest

Northern Budapest’s Pünkösdfürdő Park, the winner of Hungary’s National Green Cities Europe Award, will represent the country in the Green Cities Europe international contest in Brussels in October, Mayor Gergely Karácsony said on Facebook on Wednesday.

Karácsony said the Pünkösdfürdő project, implemented by the city council and municipal park manager FŐKERT, was one of the projects launched and completed by Budapest’s incumbent leadership. Pünkösdfürdő is the city’s first “rain park” with 600 trees, shrubs and wild flowers, Karácsony said.

Check out some photos below!

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EU institutions are crisis factories, says new Hungarian minister

European Union Hungary Poland venice commission EU funds

Hungarians have “a vision, strategy and a proposed solution” when it comes to Europe’s “crisis symptoms”, János Bóka, the EU affairs minister, said in an interview to the daily Magyar Nemzet, in which he also outlined what may be expected when Hungary holds the European Council presidency next year.

Bóka said in the interview published on Tuesday that the establishment of an independent EU affairs ministry had been born out of the need for a strong and effective representation of Hungarian interests amid “circumstances have changed in a fundamental way”.

“The European Union is in worse shape than it was. Its immune system is weakened.”

Bóka said the EU today focused its energy on finding ways to apply ideological pressure instead of nurturing the bloc’s diversity and harnessing the advantages it offers. This threatened the EU’s unity because it created rifts instead of seeking a common ground, he argued.

He said the EU was also giving the wrong responses to its external challenges. EU institutions, he said, had a history of emerging stronger and with more powers from crises while depriving member states of the tools and resources to effectively manage those crises. This is something the institutions consciously aim for, and “operate as a kind of crisis factory”, the minister said, noting that this was causing a realignment of power between member states and the institutions.

Despite member states having given up some of their powers, the EU’s economic power on the global market, he said, was waning, and the bloc was also failing to fulfil its ambitions on the global political stage. “This trend is unacceptable,” he added.

Bóka said the EU affairs ministry’s task was to offer solutions to these problems and generate political support for them from member states and the institutions. “That’s what sets us apart from others. We Hungarians have a vision, a strategy and proposed solutions when it comes to Europe’s crisis symptoms,” Bóka said. “And our proposal is related to the root of the problem.”

The minister said Hungary’s solution was that the bloc’s member states should be competitive and action-oriented, he said. The point of European cooperation is not to deprive member states of their economic and political tools, but rather to contribute to making them stronger, he said.

“We envision a Europe of nations, not a federal Europe, and that is the alternative we will present in our decision-making,” the minister said.

Concerning the EU’s operations, Bóka said Hungary was convinced that the bloc was an institutional system that must operate in accordance with its treaties and legal framework, and where the rules were enforced by checks and balances.

“I disagree with the idea that if there is political will for something in the European Union, then we can somehow just find the legal and institutional solution for it,” he said. “This is inconsistent with the principles of the rule of law which they demand from certain member states with great enthusiasm.”

The EU will only be successful if it can ensure the coexistence of the principles of national sovereignty and European cooperation among member states, he said.

During its presidency of the Council of the EU next year, Hungary will strive to demonstrate how its vision of the EU functions, Bóka said. “We don’t wish to lecture or marginalise other member states,” he said. “We want to give the possibility of political initiative and strategic direction back to member states. We will assess every initiative and proposal from the perspective of whether they address real problems…”

Bóka added that Hungary’s EU presidency would not be free of political conflict, however. “These are, of course, related to the principles and values we represent, but go beyond Hungary and the Hungarian government,” he said. “It is actually a new Europe policy and the possibility for a new European political majority that are at stake. Hungary’s presidency can also play a role in strengthening this alternative, which many people are rooting against.”

Concerning Hungary’s EU funds, Bóka said the government was doing everything it its power to unlock the resources Hungary and Hungarians were entitled to. He said the procedures that have denied Hungary access to certain funds were political in nature.

Bóka said Hungary was cooperating in the procedures in good faith and in a constructive way, but the EU institutions had been very “restrained” in their indication of the potential for an agreement, so the question was how the political negotiation process may end. But political negotiations were not new territory for Hungary, he said, “and we are not without resources”.

Hungarian opposition says slash use of farm chemicals

agriculture tractor agricultural policy

Opposition LMP has called for the use of agricultural chemicals to be slashed, and it will resubmit its bill on phasing out the pesticide glyphosate.

The European Union is considering what to do about the potentially carcinogenic chemical and will make a decision in October, László Lóránt Keresztes, the chairman of parliament’s sustainable development committee, told a press conference on Tuesday.

He called on the government to consider prohibiting the chemical’s use nationwide, and LMP has also turned to several ministers with a request that they review a study carried out by the European Greens and the European Plant Protection Action Network (PAN Europe) showing the large presence of glyphosate in European natural waters.

Glyphosate poses a risk to the environment, damaging aquatic organisms in current concentrations, according to the study.

Now it’s super cheap to travel to popular destinations from Budapest

flydubai

Dubai-based airline flydubai offers flights from Budapest to many popular holiday destinations at attractive prices.

From the Hungarian capital, you can fly to Dubai, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Zanzibar, among others. Book now for the lowest fares until 25 September for travel until 10 December.

Dubai offers a wealth of attractions, water parks, shopping, music festivals and cultural experiences. “flydubai is committed to further developing connectivity through the Dubai hub and we are delighted to offer our European passengers the opportunity to experience these attractive destinations, including Dubai, which has grown from a seasonal offering to a sought-after destination all year round. We look forward to welcoming even more European travellers on board, in both business and economy class, to popular leisure destinations such as the Maldives, Thailand and Zanzibar,” said Jeyhun Efendi, senior vice president of commercial operations and e-commerce at flydubai.

Those looking for nature and relaxation can immerse themselves in the beaches of the Maldives or the natural wonders of Sri Lanka, writes Utazómajom.

Flydubai has created an ever-expanding network of more than 115 destinations in 53 countries. Their flights cover Africa, Central Asia, Central and South-Eastern Europe and the Gulf States. The Dubai-based airline operates a fleet of 79 Boeing 737 aircraft.

German economy in big trouble, Hungary could be the winner

Péter Szijjártó BMW Factory

The German economy is facing more and more problems. In the long term, Hungary could be one of the winners. If the German economy can’t handle the challenge of cutting off from Russian gas, the challenge of going green could cause problems.

Germany in trouble

Analysts say Europe is lagging behind in the electric car revolution. The German economy has been struggling for months, with dismal figures since the end of last year. Inflation has fallen and the long-term outlook is also worrying.

Germany is suffering from a cut-off from cheap Russian energy. Europe’s largest economy risks losing the international market advantage it has built up over the past decades. A sign of this is that German business leaders are criticising official economic policy and outsourcing production. At the end of August, 52% of German businesses said that the switch to clean energy would have a negative impact on their competitiveness.

“We used to say that if something was high-tech, it must have come from Germany, but this is no longer true,” said Péter Virovácz, senior analyst at ING Bank. In the past, the strength of the German economy was exports, but that is no longer true. Covid, the energy crisis and inflation have caused problems here too. Chinese buyers are also buying their own products rather than German ones. In addition, the analyst says, there is a lack of domestic demand stimulation.

Hungary could be a winner

The problems of the German economy also affect Hungary: in 2022, a quarter of all Hungarian exports went to Germany. German companies are investing in America and Central and Eastern Europe, which could be beneficial for Hungary.

“The Hungarian economy could also be a winner of this weakness, if we look at the car industry alone, the production volume of German car manufacturers in Hungary is increasing,” Zoltán Török, senior analyst at Raiffeisen Bank, told vg.hu. BMW will start production in Hungary from 2025, which could reinforce this.

NBH welcomes ECB opinion on amendment to central bank law

MKB Bank Budapest

The Hungarian central bank (NBH) has said it welcomed the European Central Bank’s (ECB) positive opinion on the government’s amendment to the law governing the central Bank which would allow the government to spread payments for recapitalising the bank from the central budget over several years in the case of the NBH posting a temporary operating loss.

Citing international examples, the NBH had already argued that central banks can operate effectively with a temporary negative capital balance while credibly fighting inflation, it said in a statement on Monday.

With the agreement and support of the NBH, the finance ministry initiated the amendment of sections of the Central Bank Act with regard to central bank losses with the aim of loosening the law’s strict rules.

After looking to European best-practice for handling negative equity, the bank and government sought the ECB’s opinion regarding its related proposal that should the NBH’s operating capital go into the red temporarily, the government must pay into the central budget, allowing for profits of later years to ensure capital needed in the medium term.

The NBH said the new loss compensation rules would further increase the central bank’s room for maneouver, the MNB said.

Serbian president to address Budapest Demographic Summit

orbán vucic serbia

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic will be among the speakers to address the fifth Budapest Demographic Summit, President Katalin Novák said on Facebook on Thursday.

Novák thanked Vucic for accepting the invitation to deliver remarks at the summit to be held between September 14 and 15 in Budapest.

Hungarian President noted that the summit, Europe’s largest forum on family policy, will be attended by heads of state and government, decision-makers and experts from around the world.