V4 European affairs committees adopt joint statement
The European affairs parliamentary committees of Visegrad Group countries meeting in Budapest on Monday “resolutely condemned” the war in Ukraine in a joint closing statement that also drew the European Union’s attention to the challenge posed by Ukrainian grain.
After the meeting, Richárd Hörcsik, the (Fidesz) head of parliament’s European affairs committee, said the statement, besides addressing the war in Ukraine, focused on issues affecting the everyday life of the V4, energy security among them.
Referring to Ukrainian grain, he said there was “a problem”, and agriculture was a “vitally important sector” in all four countries. The current situation should not be allowed to have a severely adverse effect on their farmers, he added.
“Our future is at stake,” Hörcsik said, adding that a meeting of the presidents of the EU Affairs Committees of the European Union Parliaments (COSAC) in Sweden in May would present an opportunity to further address the issue.
Meanwhile, he said that whereas Visegrad Four countries pursued different policies in many respects, “we still look to what unites us”. Some issues can best be resolved in the EU space more easily together than individually, he said.
The closing statement expressed support for the independence and sovereignty of Ukraine and for preserving the country’s territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders.
The committees called for an immediate halt to intentional attacks against vital infrastructure and civilian targets in Ukraine. They highlighted a UN General Assembly resolution citing the organisation’s founding document which they said would serve as a basis of “comprehensive, fair and permanent peace” in Ukraine.
Also, they called for creating a mechanism in line with international law for calling Russia fully to account for its actions.
The participants of the meeting expressed appreciation for the EU to offer candidate status to Ukraine, Moldova and Bosnia-Herzegovina and the start of accession talks with Albania and North Macedonia after several years of delay. At the same time, they called for preparations of the candidacy of Georgia to be speeded up, adding that they expect the EU’s enlargement policy to get new impetus during the next presidency.
They expressed support for strengthening the external borders of the EU in order to boost effective action against illegal migration and human smuggling.
Czech expert: V4 cooperation dying because of Orbán
Josef Mlejnek, a Czech politologist, said that the V4 cooperation is in a state of clinical death. And that is because of Viktor Orbán.
According to index.hu, Mr Mlejnek talked about the issue to FORUM 24, a Czech media outlet. He said Orbán’s Russia policy baulks the cooperation between Poland, Hungary, Czechia and Slovakia. Therefore, they have to wait for the change of the government in Hungary, which would take a long time, he added. He highlighted that Hungary was a very problematic member of the cooperation because the other three states supported Ukraine. But Hungary is not alone.
Speaker: Hungary, Malta ‘on the side of peace’
Hungary and Malta “are on the side of peace”, according to a parliamentary press office statement released on Thursday after Speaker of Parliament Laszlo Kover received Maltese counterpart Angelo Farrugia in Budapest. The speakers discussed strengthening political, economic and tourism ties as well as broadening of parliamentary cooperation, the statement said. Malta is an important EU partner of Hungary both bilaterally and multilaterally, the speakers agreed, adding that joint action in international forums bolstered their advocacy capacities, MTI wrote.
They added that the war in Ukraine should be brought to an end as quickly as possible with a ceasefire and a peace treaty, and the EU should offer effective support while creating safeguards for its own security, the statement added.
Read also:
Orbán government outraged that the Czechs are not afraid of the LGBTQ propaganda
Tamás Menczer, the foreign ministry state secretary for external relations, has hit back at criticism of Hungary’s child protection law by Czechia’s foreign minister, saying Hungarians “will do anything for our children”.
Menczer responded on Facebook to a tweet by Jan Lipavsky in which he said he was “sorry that Czechia would not join the European lawsuit over Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ law”. The minister said his Pirate Party “do not intend to give up on this topic”. “Children are not threatened by seeing such characters on TV or in books. What threatens them is when hatred is artificially incited or information is withheld from them,” he added.
Menczer said: “The truth is that such characters are dangerous to our children. Children are vulnerable and cannot protect themselves. We have to protect them.” He added that children must be protected from “LGBTQ propaganda” and paedophiles. “We have seen terrible examples, we must ensure that they are not repeated,” Menczer said.
“What happens at Czech kindergartens and schools is none of my business. How Jan Lipavsky raises his children — if he has any — is none of my business, either,” the state secretary said. “But he should know that in Hungary only the decisions of Hungarians matter and Hungarians have clearly decided that children must be protected. We, Hungarians will do anything for our children, and we will protect them”, MTI wrote.
Read also:
Slovak President fears her country could step onto Orbán’s path
The newly elected Czech President Petr Pavel made his first official visit to Slovakia. On Monday evening, he had a conversation with Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová at the Slovak National Theatre.
According to index.hu, besides the relations between the two countries, the V4 (Visegrád Group) was also discussed. Touching on the topic of the V4, they also mentioned Viktor Orbán’s role in the alliance.
Throughout the evening, it was raised that neither of them agreed with the Hungarians’ position on certain issues related to the war in Ukraine. Pavel said that it was an illusion to think that if weapons were not supplied to Ukraine, there could be peace. According to him, “the Russians do not accept compromise.”
The future of the V4
A key point in the discussion was the issue of the V4, as the future of the alliance was discussed. According to Pavel, the future of the V4 and Hungary is not influenced by the Hungarian Prime Minister. He also added that he believed the role of the V4 should be reevaluated, as the alliance was not able to fulfil the expectation of being a guiding force for countries on foreign policy or security issues. He suggested that it could still function as a forum for consultation, but that its role should certainly not be overestimated.
Slovak President Čaputová took a similar position. She said the V4 was no longer seen abroad as a single political bloc. The reason for this is that the alliance does not agree on important issues such as the rule of law or certain aspects of providing aid to Ukraine, index.hu writes, citing a report by napunk.sk.
The Slovak President’s fear
According to Čaputová, the V4 alliance can help maintain relations between the neighbouring countries, so it makes sense to keep the alliance on a cultural level. The Slovak President reckoned that although their countries would always be neighbours, the leaders would change and in the future, they might find a common ground.
She added that some politicians explicitly admitted that they shared the policies of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. For this reason, she feared that in the future “Slovakia could go along Orbán’s path.”
There are patterns of policies and attitudes that seem to inspire populist leaders in Europe,
Čaputová expressed her concern.
She believes it would serve a good purpose if the EU were consistent in deciding on the Member States’ interests, which need to be linked to compliance with the rule of law.
Read alsoHungarian expert: U.S. fed up with Hungary’s shuttle diplomacy
Upcoming tension? New Czech president awaits government change in Hungary
In an interview with the French newspaper Le Monde, Petr Pavel, the new Czech president, also spoke about Viktor Orbán and the cooperation between the Visegrád Four. He believes that the Hungarian leadership will not be here forever.
Petr Pavel, who will take office as head of state on 9 March, said in an interview with the French daily on Monday that negotiations with Russia were pointless because Moscow was not willing to reach an agreement.
He added that the Czech Republic should not be a bridge between the West and the East. Rather, it should clearly pull towards the former. Commenting on the work of his predecessors, he said that for him “this kind of ambition is very strange”, as it is impossible to stand in the middle, Index writes.
In the interview, the Czech president also spoke about Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán and the cooperation of the Visegrád Four. “The V4 needs a thorough overhaul, and we need to have very serious discussions about the future of the grouping,” he said. According to him, there is no point in reorganising the V4 from the ground up. He said that it would be easier to wait for a change of government in Hungary. He said that the Hungarian leadership will not be here forever. Sooner or later, there will be a change.
Petr Pavel giving an interview to Le Monde:
Read also Orbán in trouble? New Czech president would end V4 cooperation
Orbán in trouble? New Czech president would end V4 cooperation
Petr Pavel, the president-elect of the Czech Republic, said he would like to initiate a debate about the possible termination of the V4 cooperation. The partnership consists of Hungary, Czechia, Slovakia and Poland and was restarted in 1990 after the fall of the Communism in Central Europe.
President Pavel also said he would like to deliver fighter jets for Ukraine and added that the V4 cooperation was in a crisis. That is because its members’ standpoint significantly differ on how they should treat Ukraine and Russia’s invasion, Mandiner wrote. Orbán highlights the need for peace every time, while the new Czech president would support Ukraine to help Zelenskiy defeat the invadors. Meanwhile, the outgoing Czech president, Milos Zeman, supports the strengthening of the V4 cooperation.
The Hungarian and the Czech president:
Hungarian President was in Prague
The Visegrád cooperation is an alliance of the heart and mind, President Katalin Novák said at a joint press conference with outgoing Czech counterpart Milos Zeman in Prague on Friday. Novák said “those who attack the Visegrád cooperation also attack the alliance of the heart and mind” and vowed to work effectively towards countering such attacks while she is in office as president. She added that as a strong supporter of the Visegrád cooperation she believed in its power to integrate common economic, cultural and historical values.
Novák said her talks with Zeman focused on three main topics: the Russian-Ukrainian war, Czech-Hungarian bilateral cooperation and Visegrád ties. She said they both condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and stated support to Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. They also stated their support to brokering peace as soon as possible as a solution to the conflict. As regards bilateral relations, Novák pledged to further strengthen them in the economy and in the areas of culture and tourism.
President Novák decorated Zeman. “Hungary respects its friends”, Novák said:
Answering a question, Novák said NATO’s expansion with Sweden and Finland was fundamentally important. At the meeting, Novák presented to Zeman the Order of Merit of Hungary, Grand Cross with Chain “as an expression of the Hungarian nation’s esteem” for his achievements in strengthening the friendship between the two countries and enhancing Visegrád cooperation. The Hungarian president also held informal talks with president-elect Petr Pavel. Below you may check out some photos. Pavel said in a Facebook post that Hungary and Czechia are allies but their opinion differ.
Hungarian President to decorate outgoing Czech President
President Katalin Novák is set to decorate outgoing Czech President Milos Zeman during an official visit to Prague on Friday, the president’s office said.
Novák will be received with military honours in Prague by Zeman, Sandor Palace said in a statement. Zeman will receive the Order of Merit of Hungary, Grand Cross with Chain “as an expression of the Hungarian nation’s esteem”, the statement said. Novák is also scheduled to meet president-elect Petr Pavel.
Read also True friends: Orbán received the Order of Merit of the Republic of Serbia
Orbán welcomes former Czech PM Babis’s acquittal in EU funds fraud case
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has welcomed that former Czech premier Andrej Babis has been acquitted of charges of fraud involving European Union funds.
Babis had been accused of unlawfully securing 50 million Czech koruna (EUR 2.1m) in EU funds through one of his companies for the construction of a leisure centre more than ten years ago.
“Glad to see that facts still matter!” Orbán said on Twitter in reaction to Monday’s verdict by the Prague Municipal Court. “My best wishes to Andrej Babis. Keep on fighting!” Orbán said.
Babis is a candidate in the Czech presidential election whose first round is to be held on Jan. 13-14.
Read alsoHungarian President inspects southern border with Serbian counterpart, former Czech PM
PHOTOS, VIDEOS: Advent tram of a Hungarian city chosen Europe’s most beautiful
That is consecutively the sixth time that Miskolc’s advent tram has been chosen as Europe’s most beautiful.
The good news was announced by the public transport company of the Hungarian municipality today afternoon on Facebook. The tram won for the sixth time on a popular vote initiated by a Czech website, MHD86. The title means that the advent tram of Miskolc preceded the Christmas trams of some illustrious European cities in Belgium, Czechia, Slovakia, Austria, Poland, Germany and Croatia. HERE you may check out the final result. We can tell you in advance that the silver medal went to Plzen, while the Czech capital, Prague, was awarded third place.
The advent tram in Miskolc after a snowfall:
Here are some additional photos:
And here are two videos of the tram:
Hungary’s position on the latest CEBR economic ranking revealed
The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), one of the most prestigious London-based economic consultancies, publishes its World Economic League Table (WELT) forecasts at the end of each year on the ranking of the world’s economies.
The annual report ranks the countries based on their projected economic performance, making predictions for the next 15 years. The report projects that Hungary’s ranking position will not change in the next 15 years.
The position of Hungary
According to CEBR’s calculations, the Hungarian economy will end this year in 58th place, a position that is unlikely to change in the next 15 years, until 2037.
The report finds that real GDP showed a relatively strong increase over the year, however, several economic challenges affected the Hungarian economy negatively. The recent data shows that the country experienced a contraction of 1.3 percent when measured in US dollars in 2022, which can be attributed to the “forint’s depreciation against the dollar, amounting to around 19 percent this year.”
In addition to this economic downturn, Hungary has also struggled with high levels of inflation in 2022.
Only the Baltic countries and the Czech Republic have a higher inflation rate in the European Union. Inflation has been stronger than the annual average in the latter months of the year, being in excess of 20.0 percent across September, October, and November,
the experts write.
Read alsoInflation in Hungary to be even higher in 2023: it is slowing but not stopping
If the forecast is accurate, the Hungarian economy will experience an average annual growth rate of 2.5 percent over the 15-year period from 2022 to 2037. This would result in a significant increase in the size of the Hungarian economy, with the nominal GDP, calculated in US dollars at current exchange rates, rising from an expected USD 168 billion in 2022 to USD 391 billion by 2037.
It is also interesting to note that Hungary’s economy has deteriorated compared to previous years, but not by that much. According to last year’s report, Hungary would be ranked 56th this year. This means it has only fallen 2 places compared to last year’s expectations.
Which countries are at the top?
As novekedes.hu wrote, based on the report, the second-placed China will not overtake the first-placed USA in the economic ranking until 2036 at the earliest. As the news portal says,
The institute now predicts that China will become the world’s largest economy by 2036, just one year before the end of the forecast period to 2037, pushing the United States down to second place.
Next year, the following countries are likely to dominate the top 5:
- USA
- China
- Germany
- Japan
- India
Hungary to produce a lot of small arms
The Hungarian Armed Forces will have its stock of small arms replaced with arms manufactured under a Czech licence, the defence minister said in Kiskunfélegyháza, in southern Hungary, on Thursday.
Czech firearms manufacturer Colt CZ Group on Thursday said it signed a joint venture agreement with Hungary’s state-owned N7 National Defence Industry Innovation Holding to establish a small arms production facility in Hungary.
The firearms will be produced both for the Hungarian Armed Forces and the international market, Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky said in a video posted on Facebook.
The minister called the partnership a “very important step in the development of the Hungarian military and the Hungarian defence industry”.
Szalay-Bobrovniczky said he firmly believed that Hungary should not just purchase equipment, but also “create an innovation platform, opportunities for innovation, jobs and generate tax revenue” in the interest of reducing its dependence on arms suppliers.
Should we expect a 380 or 425 HUF/EUR exchange rate in 2023? Here are the prognoses
ING Bank shared an analysis comparing the exchange rate changes of the Central Eastern European currencies (Poland, Czechia, Hungary, Romania). They compared what factors played a role in the exchange rate change of the different currencies, and found that global and regional ones were not the most decisive ones, especially in the case of the forint. That means the Hungarian national currency may have a bright next year, but there are some prerequisites the government needs to fulfil to reach a better exchange rate. You may find the details below.
In their analysis, ING Bank argues that multiple external factors affected regional currencies. These include the strengthening of the USD harming all emerging currencies. Furthermore, because of the Russian-Ukrainian war, investors became more cautious in the region. Finally, increasing interest rates also had a disadvantageous effect on countries having high state debt like Hungary.
However, the Hungarian forint lost its value even against its regional competitors like the Polish zloty, the Czech koruna and the Romanian lei. When compared to the Polish national currency, the depreciation of the Hungarian currency reached 10 percent. That means something local weakened the forint, portfolio.hu wrote.
From an ING chart showing the value change of the domestic currencies against the USD between November 2018 and November 2022, it is clear that the regional currencies moved together until April-May 2022, when the forint broke away from the others.
ING argues that in the short term, global factors can have a devastating effect on domestic currencies. However, Poland, Czechia and Romania managed to grow again a couple of months after the invasion began. Meanwhile, the forint’s recovery was slower and weaker. That is because in a midterm, the fundamental and vulnerability differences matter.
They found that in the decomposition of the Czech koruna against the USD between March 2020 and November 2022, the global and regional element was minus 11 percent, while the local was plus 12 percent. Thanks to that, the koruna could strengthen against the American currency.
Meanwhile, those rates were minus 10 percent and minus 13 percent in the case of the Hungarian forint, resulting in an overall minus 23 percent drop.
That is because Hungary is exceptionally vulnerable. The rate of energy import is the highest in Hungary in the altogether consumption, there are frequent changes in the economic policies, the government is balancing between the EU and Russia, and the reception of the EU funds remains a question.
Read alsoWill Hungary’s forint get stronger or weaker due to the government’s latest decision?
What can the forint expect in 2023? If the negotiations with the European Commission result in a fortunate agreement, the forint might go below 380/EUR. A bigger strengthening is unlikely because markets already priced the success of the talks.
Others are not that optimistic. The Societé Generale expects the Hungarian forint to get stronger, but only until the 400/EUR threshold. Unicredit believes the HUF/EUR exchange rate will be above 425 in 2023. However, all prognoses agree that everything depends on the result of the EC-Hungary negotiations.
Joint Hungarian-Czech company to produce railway control and signalling equipment
Rail transport and haulage are vitally important for the growth of the Hungarian economy, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Thursday, welcoming the launch of a joint company producing control and signalling equipment by Hungary’s V-Híd Építő and Czech market-leader AZD Praha.
Establishment of the Hungarian majority-owned JV V4SIL will not only create jobs but will also guarantee the future supply of skilled workers, he said. Szijjártó said that among the lessons to be learnt from the series of crises that typified recent years is the growing value of rail transport and haulage. During the coronavirus pandemic, supply chains often broke down, but the railways “proved to be crisis-proof”, he added.
The events of the recent period also demonstrated the extent to which vulnerable countries that were unable to keep their critical infrastructure under their own control had become, he said.
He also noted the railways’ favourable environmental aspects, adding that “if we’re able to transfer a large part of transport to railways, then we’ll be able to cut down a significant source of environmental pollution.”
Read alsoPHOTOS: grandiose marble hall of Budapest railway station reopened
Czech EU presidency: Hungary threatens EU unity – UPDATED
COP15, the UN biodiversity summit, has begun. The Czech EU presidency says Hungary was jeopardising the EU’s united position on gender issues, based on an article published on politico.eu.
The Czech Presidency of the European Union has written to the ambassadors of all 27 Member States suggesting that Hungary was threatening the bloc’s global leadership on gender equality, politico.eu wrote. They did not write down the name of the country jeopardizing the joint EU standpoint, two EU diplomats pinpointed the news outlet the country: Hungary.
Ambassadors meeting on Wednesday wanted the EU to push for inclusive gender language in the COP15 UN biodiversity negotiations. The Montreal talks want to extend the definition of gender beyond the male-female pole.
Read also Minister shared when the Hungarian port in Italy will be ready for use
However, according to Politico, Hungary’s ambassador said that was completely unacceptable. This leaves the EU unable to speak with a single voice and, according to the Czechs, puts the EU’s global leadership at stake and raises credibility concerns.
It is not only Hungary that has problems, but Bulgaria too. Bulgaria has not renounced the EU position, but the country’s constitutional court has taken a position on gender definition that is contrary to the EU.
UPDATE
In the previous versions of this article, we erroneously wrote that a certain Czech ambassador made the statement about Hungary’s refusal to join the EU’s united position on gender issues. We do apologize for that error.
Read alsoHungarian minister met with the leader of the Hungarian-hater, far-right SNS in Slovakia
Breaking news: Hungary blocks EU aid to Ukraine amid Russia war
On Tuesday, the Orbán cabinet blocked an agreement on a EUR 18 billion aid package for Ukraine at a meeting of finance ministers in Brussels.
It required a vote on three pieces of legislation, but Finance Minister Mihály Varga indicated he would not agree to the amendment to the joint financial regulation, which required unanimity, so the package as a whole could not be adopted.
The EU candidate country, under attack from Russia, is estimated to need EUR 3-4 billion a month in aid. The EU would contribute roughly half of this, which would be accessible from the beginning of next year, rather than the ad hoc aid that has been provided on a piecemeal basis.
The Hungarian government has already indicated in advance that it did not support joint borrowing. Government members have stressed that they were not discussing aid, but rather – on principle – the EU borrowing together. Instead, they would give Ukraine its share of the EU’s GDP bilaterally, and sought to show by a government decision that they meant it.
However, this solution would require EU countries to provide national bug guarantees, which in some cases require parliamentary approval, which could take some time.
The EU could borrow together more economically, which – because of its relatively small GNP – would cost the Hungarian government less than, say, Italy.
Tuesday’s Hungarian veto meant that decisions on all other issues on the finance ministers’ agenda – the minimum corporate tax rate, which Budapest is also blocking, the Hungarian recovery plan and its €5.8 billion subsidies, and the decision to freeze €7.5 billion in EU funds for Hungary because of corruption problems, were postponed.
As we wrote before, EC last week said it had decided to give its support for the adoption of Hungary’s plan for accessing EU recovery funding worth 5.8 billion euros, though the EC would continue to freeze 7.5 billion euros in cohesion funding, details HERE.
Czech presidency: solution supported by 26 EU members
Czech Finance Minister Zbyněk Stanjura, chairing the finance ministers’ meeting, tasked the Council to work on “a solution supported by 26 EU members” that would bypass Hungary’s veto.
Possible scenarios: a new finance ministers’ summit in December, or the issue being put to EU leaders in mid-December.
UPDATE
- Explanation after Hungary’s veto: aid to Ukraine is not fair – UPDATE
Read alsoHungarian government revealed how it will spend the EUR billions of the EU funds
PM Orbán meets former Czech president in Budapest
Prime Minister Viktor Orban met former Czech President Vaclav Klaus for talks in Budapest on Thursday.
According to information from the prime minister’s press chief, the talks focused on the war in Ukraine and the economic crisis threatening recession and an energy shortage.
At the talks, Klaus also presented his book “Inflation returning: A slippery road to indebtedness” to his host.
Read also Minister revealed which country’s NATO accession Hungary would support
“Hungarians are Trojan horses of the Russians” – Czechs and Poles boycott V4 meeting
Hungary is usually the last country to agree to EU sanctions packages. They ask for concessions and threaten not to support further sanctions. This is the view of the President of the Czech Chamber of Deputies. Slovakia cancelled the Visegrád 4 meeting.
“Because of Hungary’s energy policy, the European Union cannot have a unified position. The Hungarian government has a pro-Russian policy,” said Seznam Zprav. This is why Czechs are boycotting the upcoming meeting of V4 presidents in Bratislava.
Read alsoChinese secret police in Hungary
According to information from Slovak Napunk, the meeting has also been rejected by Markéta Pekarová Adamová, president of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, and Milos Vystrcil, president of the Czech Senate, who said it was a way of signalling their disagreement with the Hungarians.
According to diplomatic sources, the presidents of the two houses of the Polish parliament will not attend the meeting. Slovakia will, therefore, not hold the meeting as planned.
Mikulás Bek, the Czech minister for European affairs, says the Hungarian government was attracting more and more critics, rtl.hu reports.
Viktor Orbán is asking Brussels to cut energy prices
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on his social media page that the European Union’s prime ministers discussed two “cutting-edge” issues at their summit in Prague, which ended on Friday. The two issues are Russia’s war in Ukraine and energy.
EU summit in Prague
In a Facebook post, the Prime Minister wrote that in the Ukrainian-Russian war he had taken the Hungarian position that the most important thing was peace and to prevent escalation. At present, events are pointing in this direction, but a ceasefire and negotiations are needed, he stressed. Orbán called on the leaders of the major EU states to all try to negotiate in order to prevent the war from spreading further.
The eighth package of sanctions
As far as energy is concerned, the Prime Minister pointed out that all the important Hungarian national goals have been achieved, and we have been exempted from the points of the eighth package which are “damaging to us”. He added that this package of sanctions does not apply to Hungary’s gas supply or to energy from nuclear power plants, and in fact it allows Hungary to build the Paks 2 nuclear power plant, and to continue to do so without any disruption, mfor.hu reports.
Called on the EU to take immediate action to reduce energy prices
Orbán also said that the European Commission has been called on to take immediate action to reduce energy prices across Europe, after the “sanctions have sent energy prices skyrocketing”. At the same time, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that EU leaders have called on the European Commission to come up with a plan to reduce energy prices as soon as possible.
Most politicians were in favour of setting a maximum price for gas, but no specific solution was found, said Mateusz Morawiecki. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said that most European leaders agreed with the proposal to separate electricity and gas prices. “The majority opinion is that a common European solution is needed,” Fiala stressed. According to him, specific proposals could be discussed at the next European Council.
