The Czech Republic

PM Orbán showed the southern border fence to his Czech counterpart Andrej Babis

Hungary Czech Republic border

Hungary will soon face growing migration pressure on its southern border, as this is where people fleeing Afghanistan attempt to enter the European Union, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said after inspecting the Hungary-Serbia border with his Czech counterpart Andrej Babis on Wednesday.

Orbán told reporters that although Hungary’s border fence was effective, more officers may be needed to protect the border. Orbán said Brussels was the “weak link” in Hungary’s border protection measures for saying that member states should take in those wanting to flee Afghanistan, adding that this constituted “a betrayal”.

While thousands of people are posted on the border to ensure the safety of those in the inner parts of the continent,

“Brussels is betraying Hungary and the European people,”

the prime minister said. Hungary is protecting the whole of Europe, he said, adding that hopefully Brussels’s plan to bring in people from Afghanistan could be thwarted. Help should be provided at the point where it is needed instead of bringing trouble to Hungary, the Czech Republic and the rest of the EU, he said.

Orbán said that in 2015 Hungary had to withstand an “invasion” of more than 400,000 migrants who had claimed that German Chancellor Angela Merkel had invited them to Germany. It then decided to build a fence on its southern border after it became nearly impossible to maintain public safety, he added. Those that want to can protect their borders, he said, insisting that it was the will, and not the ability to do so that the EU was lacking.

Hungary’s fence is protected by 4,500 officers,

making it one of biggest expenses in the country’s law enforcement budget, Orban said, adding that the EU made no extra contribution to Hungary to cover these costs.

The prime minister praised the political and physical support Hungary received from the Czech Republic and the other Visegrád Group countries in protecting its border “when things were at their worst”. Orban said his government would again accept the help offered by the Czech prime minister.

He said the EU should actually be protecting the Schengen borders further to the south, as

Serbia should already be a member of both the EU and the passport-free Schengen Zone.

If Serbia had already been admitted to the bloc, “we’d all be safer,” he added.

In response to a question, Orbán said that without the border fence, millions of migrants would have entered the Schengen Zone, Europe would have seen more crime and terrorist attacks and women in Germany would feel less safe. Migration is not a human right, Orbán said, arguing that

people should work to make their own homelands more liveable.

“No one can demand that we allow all that previous generations in our countries worked for to be undone by a flow of millions of migrants,” Orban said. “But we are prepared to help them fix their countries.”

Babis said the EU was “preoccupied with many pointless things” such as migrant resettlement quotas. Instead it should take action against people smugglers and work to stem the flow of migrants outside Europe, he said.

He said Hungary’s had been the only well-functioning Schengen border when its fence was completed in 2015.

Babis said that though some claimed that there were no migrants coming to Europe, both their numbers and the number of people smugglers caught by the European authorities had tripled this year. Although Europe’s approach to migration is changing, more countries should be allowed to join the Schengen Zone and greater emphasis should be placed on protecting the continent’s maritime borders, he added.

Orbán
Read alsoOrbán: The Hungarian opposition is in the pocket of the Americans

High-speed rail link to connect Prague and Budapest?

bullet-train high speed railway
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will pay a one-day official visit to the Czech Republic on Sept. 29, his press chief said on Wednesday, confirming press reports from Prague.
 
Orbán will hold talks with Czech counterpart Andrej Babis, Bertalan Havasi said. Czech daily Lidove noviny reported that the prime ministers are set to discuss European integration and the European Union’s recovery fund, among current issues.
 
Hungary Czech Republic visit
Meeting in 2018. Photo: https://www.facebook.com/orbanviktor
 
Orbán will be accompanied by Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, who will discuss investment opportunities and
 
a high-speed rail link
 
with Karel Havlicek, the Czech minister of industry, trade and transport, the paper said.
 
 
MTI reports that the value of exports in euros increased by an annual 10 percent in July, while imports were 14.7 percent higher than a year earlier, posting a deficit of 193 million euros, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Wednesday, quoting its first estimate. Exports were worth 9.498 billion euros in July while imports came to 9.691 billion.
 
Export growth slowed in July
 
as shutdowns due to supply chain interruptions caused a drop in the output of the automotive industry.
 
Meanwhile, the annual inflation in Hungary was 4.9 percent in August, up from 4.6 percent in the previous month, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Wednesday. Prices in the category of goods that includes vehicle fuel grew by 9.2 percent, with vehicle fuel prices rocketing 21.7 percent. Food prices rose by 3.7 percent, while household energy prices edged 0.4 percent higher.
 
Core inflation was 3.6 percent, while month on month, inflation was 0.2 percent.
 

Hungarian couples to storm foreign fertility clinics?

Family Család Baba Baby

IVF clinics of neighbouring countries can expect an increase of interest from Hungarian couples.

Lately, the Hungarian government has taken some decisions and passed some unpopular bills. From the “homophobic law” to the reorganisation of the universities’ old structures, these decrees made many people react negatively.

The latest government decree accepted in summer with a pro-government majority did not only cause dissatisfaction; many decided to seek a solution to their problem outside of the country.

The Hungarian government decided to ban the independent functioning of all IVF – in vitro fertilisation – clinics and brought them under state control.

Although the treatment itself and all medications are accessible in a public institution, waiting lists are longer. Furthermore, the process is less personal, and state-owned clinics offer fewer types of treatments.

As a consequence, many decide to seek a solution on the other side of the border. As Népszava highlights, they do so not only because of better possibilities but also because couples do not want their embryo to do anything with the Hungarian system.

Fertility clinics in the Czech Republic and Slovakia already registered a growing number of applications.

Hvg.hu writes that many foreign medical centres are already preparing for the rush. Most places extend their staff with Hungarian-speaking assistants, while others rearrange their marketing budget.

Although the law will only come into effect from July 1 of 2022, its impact is already showing.

From September 30, no private clinic can begin new treatment.

Minister of the Prime Minister’s Office Gergely Gulyás and Minister for Families Katalin Novák said the decision was taken to make the finances of these clinics more transparent. Gergely Gulyás claimed that these institutions had abused governmental resources. In reality, no private clinic received any financial support from the state.

Furthermore, some people do not only wish to centralise the process but to ban it for good. András Veres, president of the Hungarian Catholic Bishop’s Conference, represents this standpoint. He claims that for bioethical purposes, it is not enough to create a harsher law, but the whole program and the work of these clinics should be terminated.

Those couples who can not have their own children due to fertility issues should adopt.

orbán
Read alsoDid the Hungarian government withhold the deteriorating health care situation?

You can now get your food even in the middle of Lake Balaton! – VIDEO

Balaton jetski

Out sailing and ran out of food? No worries, this company will deliver your dinner on a jet-ski wherever you are on the lake.

Lake Balaton is one of the most popular vacation destinations in the country, not only for Hungarians. Central Europe’s largest lake with its fresh water and beautiful view of the towns and villages around it is the perfect choice for a romantic afternoon or evening.

4 exciting places to visit near Lake Balaton – PHOTOS

A nice meal delivered on board right in the middle of the lake can top the experience.

DoDo, a Czech startup from whom the idea came, looked for the perfect partner to make its project come true. They needed someone who could provide an eco-friendly solution to deliver the orders. The company has rigorous sustainability requirements, and the protection of Lake Balaton is a priority for them.

That is how they came to choose the Hungarian company

Narke, the developer of the world’s first electrojet designed for mass manufacturing.

The aquatic service had its test run last weekend, writes turizmus.com.

The company founded on the shores of the lake considers the protection of the lake and its fauna a priority. Using their words, “The Electrojet reaches way above industry standards. Designed with luxury features, it is a high-spec water toy powered by 100% electricity.”

This new generational, zero-emission Cyberjet does not pollute the air or the waters at all.

“We constantly look for possibilities to extend and develop our delivery services…We found the perfect partner in Narke who developed the first electrojet, as the Hungarian company – similar to us – considers innovation and sustainability their basic principles.”, said Károly Sáfár, DoDo’s representative in Hungary.

Delivering to a boat is quite the challenge since both the aquatic and inland parts of the process need to be synchronised. The high-performance logistics platform of DoDo works with artificial intelligence, for which this complexity does not mean a difficulty. Thanks to this system,

orders can be delivered quickly, in around half an hour. The record so far is 18 minutes.

The Cyberjet of Narke, developed by Hungarian engineers, can go 50 kilometres with one charging. The electrical engine has 95 horsepower and can speed the jet up to 55km/h.

The shallow draught of the jet does not stir up slit as much as bigger boats do, so it does not bother the fauna of the lake. Its propeller works in a closed tunnel to avoid harming all creatures in the water. The electric jet-ski can solely be driven by someone who has a boat driving licence.

DoDo will decide based on the pilot project on Lake Balaton whether to introduce its service in other countries, as well. Since the company is a crucial player in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland, too, these countries can be the next to have the chance to order food in the middle of a lake.

Tihany Balaton Uplands
Read alsoGiant hotel and residential park to be built in Lake Balaton’s gem, Tihany: locals protested

Hungary helps Czech, Vietnamese virus protection efforts

Hungary is helping the Czech Republic and Vietnam in their protection efforts against the coronavirus, the state secretary for communication and Hungary’s international profile said late on Wednesday.

Tamás Menczer said on Facebook that thanks to Hungary’s successful vaccine acquisitions, it had made good progress with vaccinations and “what’s more, we are even able to help our allies and partners”.

The Czech Republic and Vietnam have asked for Hungary’s help, he said.

The government has decided to lend 100,000 doses of Janssen vaccine to the Czech Republic and donate 100,000 doses of AstraZeneca and 100,000 antigen tests to Vietnam, he added.

Menczer said the Czech Republic was one of Hungary’s most important allies in Europe and the stronger the protection efforts were in the countries of the region, the better it was for Hungary.

Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, Hungary has lent more than 440,000 doses of vaccine to the Czech Republic and Vietnam is an important partner in the Southeast Asia region, he added.

covid coronavirus hungary hospital
Read alsoHungary reports 86 new Covid-19 infections, no deaths

Official highlights Budapest-Warsaw high-speed railway project

railway frankfurt high speed

Integrating Hungary in a European high-speed railway network will be “the grandest railway project of our life”, State Secretary László Mosoczi told an online conference on the Budapest-Warsaw railway development project aimed at connecting the Visegrad countries and Austria.

Once the new service is complete within the next 10 years, Vienna and Bratislava will be accessible from Budapest in less than 2 hours, Prague in 3.5 hours, and Warsaw in 5.5 hours, the state secretary said.

The project, he insisted, will guarantee a sustainable future for Hungarian railways.

Hungary has spent over 2,000 billion forints (EUR 5.6bn) on domestic railway developments in the past 15 years, while the government could spend “several times as much” in future to increase the competitiveness of the railway, Mosoczi said.

The state secretary noted the European Union’s directive of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 90 percent before 2050, and said that

“the real solution” could be switching over from cars and aircraft to trains, which “could even ensure full emissions-free operations”.

örs vezér tere square hév metro 2
Read alsoEUR 12.5m allocated to connecting Budapest metro, suburban rail – VIDEO

The Hungarian government is committed to national cohesion

Hungary national cohesion

Due to its economic achievements over the past ten years, Hungary has sufficient resources for supporting families, religious life and economic development, Finance Minister Mihály Varga said at the consecration of a new Reformed church in Panet (Mezőpanit), in central Romania, this weekend.

The Hungarian government has contributed over 350 million forints (EUR 1m) to the costs of construction, the Finance Ministry said in a statement on Sunday. The minister confirmed

the government’s commitment to national cohesion,

the prosperity of Hungary’s residents and their ethnic kin abroad, and preserving the Christian roots, culture and values of Europe.

For this reason, the government has promoted the economic prosperity of ethnic Hungarians abroad for several years, the minister said, citing Hungarian support for the

Transylvanian economic development programme launched in 2017.

Varga noted that the government had part-financed the renovation of 3,000 churches and the construction of nearly 150 churches in Hungary and the neighbouring countries since 2010.

In the forthcoming year, the actions of the Hungarian presidency of the Visegrád Group will be governed by the conviction that the member states – the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia – have

a vested interest in each other’s success, stability and prosperity,

Zsolt Németh, head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee, told MTI on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, Németh, along with Martin Klus, state secretary at the Slovak Foreign Ministry, and József Berényi, Slovakia’s former state secretary of foreign affairs, held a forum on relations between the V4 presidency, central Europe and the European Union at a student camp of Slovakia’s ethnic Hungarian community in Gombasek (Gombaszög).

The contributors agreed on the need to strengthen central Europe, especially through infrastructure development projects, economic cooperation and trade, Németh said. They termed the voluntary nature of Visegrád cooperation as an asset, enabling the member countries to cooperate just in the fields of shared interests, he said. It is another common feature that the Visegrád countries highly value freedom and reject external pressure, Németh said, referring to recent “moves by the European Union which can be seen as a kind of external pressure”.

The single issue of disagreement was dual citizenship as the Hungarian government insists on granting Hungarian citizenship to ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia, he said.

The incumbent Slovak state secretary, Németh said, was open to further consultations, stressed the need to amend the relevant law, and expressed hope that “the issue would be settled in a reassuring way” once

the Hungarian community would once again be represented in the Slovak parliament.

Hungary builds new nuclear reactors but is committed to green transition, too

paks

Governors of the central banks of the Visegrád Group countries and the region’s leading financial experts on Thursday held a conference on green transition in the region, organised by the National Bank of Hungary (NBH). The Gradual Transition into a Greener Economy – Challenges and Opportunities conference was opened by NBH governor György Matolcsy, NBH said.

The alliance of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia is prevalent in several policy areas, including cooperation between the countries’ central banks, the statement said. NBH is committed to supporting regional cooperation and strengthening ties within the group, it said.

The coronavirus pandemic has thrown into relief the importance of the green transition,

a task seen as a priority by the region’s central banks, the statement said.

Matolcsy said in his address that gradual transition to a green economy was key to a successful Visegrád Group. While the pandemic has opened new opportunities to such a transition, the process is most effective in international cooperation, the panelists said.

Visegrád Group to set up a joint digital knowledge centre

Hungary lends 200,000 more vaccines to the Czech Republic – UPDATED

Hungary has lent an additional batch of 200,000 Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines to the Czech Republic. The shipment was delivered to Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis by Hungarian Ambassador Miklós Boros on Friday.

Babis expressed thanks for Hungary’s repeated help at the handover event in Prague’s central military hospital. Previously, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó delivered a total of 149,000 Pfizer vaccines that Hungary lent to the Czech Republic in June and July. Under an agreement, the Czech Republic will
return all the vaccines to Hungary by the end of this year.
The Hungarian Medical Chamber (MOK) has welcomed a Friday announcement that coronavirus vaccination would be made mandatory for health-care staff. “At present this measure could ensure protection to both patients and staff,” MOK said on its website.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced the planned measure earlier on Friday. The chamber said it did not have official statistics showing the vaccination rate of health professionals, but added that it was higher than the Hungarian average.
 
 
UPDATE:
 
The board of nurse association MESZK expressed its support for the introduction of mandatory Covid vaccination on Friday. The organisation said on its website that taking the vaccine will ensure that in case of a new wave of the pandemic, health workers will not get infected and they will not pass on the infection.
“Let’s show an example and let’s all take the vaccine,”
it added.
 
Featured image: illustration

Children’s programmes, folk dance, concerts, bike competition today in the Várkert Bazár, Budapest!

rsz_hungary_budapest_v4

Hungary’s presidency of the Visegrád Group will feature several cultural events, programmes and campaigns, the Hungarian Tourism Agency (MTÜ) said on Friday.

Hungary officially took over the V4 presidency for twelve months on July 1 with the formal opening event of the presidency taking place in Budapest’s Várkert Bazár on July 10.

The schedule on Saturday includes children’s programmes beginning at 10am to be followed by

folk dance performances, a BMX competition and meeting with the winner of 2020 Tour de Hongrie, and a pop concert,

MTÜ told MTI in a statement.

Hungary, holding the V4 rotating presidency for the sixth time, has set the goal to successfully relaunch Central Europe, and the whole of the EU, in the economic, social and diplomatic sectors. The presidency also aims to intensify cooperation and partnership among the four member states.

Wall painting marking 30th anniversary of Visegrád Group inaugurated in Budapest

V4 to speed up development plans, says foreign minister

visegrád four meeting

The Visegrád Group countries plan to further and speed up their development plans, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in Ljubljana on Friday, after a meeting of the heads of government of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.

One key development is a high-speed railway between the Visegrád countries, he said, adding that such railways are scarce commodities in central Europe.

The new railway line is planned to link Warsaw and Budapest via the Czech Republic and Bratislava, Szijjártó said.

The feasibility study for the Hungarian section has already been completed, and the V4 working group for transport issues is convening in September, he added.

The 170-kilometre section will mostly follow a new route, south of the Vertes Hills, to keep environmental stress the lowest possible, and will have a direct link to the western European high-speed railway network near the triple boundary of Hungary, Austria and Slovakia, Szijjártó said.

The track will be suitable for maximum speeds ranging from 230 to 320km/h pending the terrain, he said, adding that travel time from Budapest to Bratislava will be reduced by an hour and a half, to Prague by three and a half hours and to Warsaw by five and a half hours.

Once completed, the high-speed railway will have a capacity to carry 20 million passengers a year, Szijjártó said. Further, it may help reduce annual carbon emission by 400,000 tonnes in central Europe, he said.

visegrád four
Read alsoWall painting marking 30th anniversary of Visegrad Group inaugurated in Budapest

PM Orbán: imperialists always exploited the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia

visegrád four

It is important that the Visegrád Group (V4) countries get to know each other’s culture as much as possible, Bence Rétvári, parliamentary state secretary of the Ministry of Human Resources, said in Nagymaros on Thursday.

Rétvári addressed a cultural event celebrating Hungary’s taking over the presidency of the Visegrad Group from Poland for the next year. Rétvári told journalists that besides political and economic cooperation, cultural ties were also important.

He said that historically imperialists entering the region, whether from the west, east or south, had

exploited the culture of all four Visegrád countries

— Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia — for their own purposes while attempting to impose their own cultures.

V4 cultural cooperation, however, was all about mutual respect and striving to become deeply familiar with each other’s culture.

Minister: criticism because of full-stadium EURO2020 matches in Hungary ‘politically motivated’

Hungary Germany football
Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó on Thursday delivered a batch of 100,000 Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines that Hungary is lending to the Czech Republic to Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
 
Answering a question from MTI at his joint press conference with Babis, Szijjártó said criticisms of Hungary’s decision to organise full-stadium Euro 2020 matches had been “politically motivated”. Szijjártó said the warnings that full-stadium matches could lead to a new wave of the pandemic had come from those whose countries had a low vaccination rate.
 
The minister said he was convinced that both the Hungarian and international fans had enjoyed their time at the matches, adding that
concerns over the safety of the matches had proven unfounded.
We reported HERE that even the Slovak Ministry of Health said two weeks earlier that the full-stadium matches in Hungary could have serious epidemiological consequences. They feared then that the Hungarian EURO2020 matches could spread the Indian variant in the region.
 
Meanwhile,
the Hungarian government and the Unified Hungarian Jewish Congregation (EMIH) provided 10 million forints (EUR 28,490) in humanitarian aid for persecuted Jews in Yemen
caught up in the civil war there, the Prime Minister’s office said on Thursday.

The aid, with 5 million forints provided by the State Secretariat in charge of the Hungary Helps humanitarian programme and matched by EMIH, is aimed at helping the local Jewish community remain in their homeland and preserve their religious heritage, the PM’s office said in a statement.

PM Orbán: V4 countries should become winners of global economic transformation

visegrád four

The Hungarian presidency of the Visegrád Group will promote the member countries’ efforts to become winners of global economic changes, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in Katowice on Wednesday.

Orbán told a press conference marking the end of the Polish presidency of the V4 that the Hungarian presidency, to start on July 1, will help the Visegrád Group members (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia) restart their economies through boosting investments.

As taxes need to be kept low to attract investments, Hungary does not support international initiatives for tax hikes, he added.

Orbán named security as another important aim, adding that this was tightly connected to migration. Hungary does not support the mandatory distribution of migrants, he said, adding that migration posed an especially great risk in the current health situation.

Further, Hungary advocates the soonest possible European integration of Western Balkans countries, the prime minister said.

Orbán stressed the need of a restart in intellectual terms as well. He said the Visegrád Group countries, both individually and as a group, will participate in the debates about the EU’s future.

Orbán congratulated Poland on its performance as V4 president in what he called the most difficult year of recent decades. Nevertheless, cooperation continued among the four members and none of them were left alone in trouble, he added. The Visegrád Group members cooperated in transporting citizens home when Covid restrictions made travel difficult, distributing equipment, sending doctors to each other and also in access to vaccines, he said.

Orbán said that after the coronavirus pandemic, the global economic and world politics status quo has changed.

The world’s largest free trade area has been established in Asia and the United Kingdom quitted the European Union, he said. The prime minister said that good relations with Britain should be maintained even after Brexit.

Orbán said that if the V4 countries were considered a single entity today, they would represent the world’s 17th largest economy, with economic growth twice as fast as the EU’s and public debt representing only 4 percent of that in the EU. After Germany, the V4 countries include the highest number of workers in the EU, he said.

In response to a question, Orbán said that overcoming the area’s lag in infrastructure development was a priority. During the Cold War, connections were established in east-west direction and the situation has not changed since, he said. However, building north-south links have now become vitally important for the V4 countries. It remains to be seen, however, how much EU funding can be involved in this programme, he said.

Orbán said central Europe represented considerable economic weight in the EU economy. The central European nations are full members of the European Union with major contributions to its overall performance that help the bloc keep pace with other regions. Accordingly, they demand due respect, he said.

The prime minister said Hungarians will never accept other EU members telling them how to raise their children. Nor will they accept anyone saying that a central European nation should be brought to its knees, he said.

visegrád four
Read alsoWall painting marking 30th anniversary of Visegrad Group inaugurated in Budapest

Wall painting marking 30th anniversary of Visegrad Group inaugurated in Budapest

visegrád four

A government official on Wednesday inaugurated a wall painting in downtown Budapest, marking the 30th anniversary of the Visegrád Group, and praised the group as Europe’s strongest political alliance, which is gaining economic weight, too.

The alliance comprising the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia is “synonymous with common sense, cooperation and strength, and the restart after the pandemic” in Europe, Tamás Menczer, a state secretary of the foreign ministry, said.

“We want a Europe in which cooperation is based on mutual respect and strong nation states,” he said.

Jerzy Snopek, Poland’s Ambassador to Hungary, noted that the painting was being inaugurated on the last day of Poland holding the group’s rotating presidency. He said that Hungary, which will start its one-year presidency tomorrow, will hopefully be able to lead the V4 in a “better epidemiological situation”.

Péter Fekete, the state secretary in charge of culture, said the V4 will organise a joint conference on cultural innovations borne out of the pandemic during the Hungarian presidency, which will be followed by an exhibition in Strasbourg.

Joanna Urbanska, the director of the Polish Institute in Budapest, said the wall painting designed by Magda Miszczak is also being inaugurated in Bratislava, Prague and Warsaw.

The painting adorns a wall of 32 Klauzal Street, in the 7th district of Budapest.

visegrad group prime minister
Read alsoVisegrád Group to set up a joint digital knowledge centre

European football fans set an example in Budapest – VIDEO + PHOTOS

the netherlands Hungary

 

On Sunday evening, the Puskás Arena witnessed a heroic game that ended with the elimination of the Netherlands from the EURO 2020.

One of the beauties of football is when a team that was previously considered weaker with fewer chances to win ends up causing a considerable surprise. That is precisely what happened on Sunday, on the first day of the EURO 2020’s round of 16. Both games, at least on paper, had their favourite to qualify itself to the next round. Their opponent, however, thought otherwise. 

The Czech Republic defeats the Netherlands in the Puskás Arena 

The Puskás Arena of Budapest gave place to the heroic fight between the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. The orange national 11, which previously won all its group stage games with only two goals conceded, arrived at the venue full of strength and hopes. 

An enormous crowd of Dutch supporters accompanied their national team to the Hungarian capital,

to make sure the players have all the support they need for the win. As origo.hu wrote, Budapest was practically “occupied” by orange jerseys and red-white-blue flags. 

Dutch supporters probably saw the mesmerizing photos and videos of Hungarians marching across the city before their national team played with France, and they decided to do the same. They created an incredible atmosphere with their dancing and singing. Check out this video and how amazing they look, painting the whole picture in orange colour. 

https://youtu.be/uwKRzwmmJ64

Those who had a ticket for the game started their march from the Heroes’ Square towards the stadium. As not everyone can fit into the Puskás Arena, a huge crowd of football fans cheering for the Oranje watched the game in the fan zone of the City Park, behind the Vajdahunyad Castle. 

 

They did not stop, of course, as they reached the stadium. During the whole game, they filled the Puskas Arena with joy and energy. 

Netherlands
MTI/Szigetváry Zsolt
Netherlands
MTI/Szigetváry Zsolt

Unfortunately, this time, their efforts did not pay off, as the Oranje was eliminated in a heroic fight by the strong Czech Republic. Nevertheless, the atmosphere the supporters created, both inside and outside the stadium, is the essence of these tournaments. To have a great time and bring people together. 

czechs
Photo: MTI
Czech Republic
MTI/Szigetváry Zsolt

The Czech Republic, for sure, had a big crowd behind it, as well. Moreover, the national team enjoyed the solidarity and support of numerous

Hungarian football fans who arrived with a big banner to express their condolences for all those who lost a family member in last week’s terrible earthquake in the Czech Republic.

The banner said: We share your pain, we stand by you today, as well!

Puskás Arena
MTI/Szigetváry Zsolt

Not only the supporters of Sunday’s game lit Budapest up. Since we have mentioned Hungarian football fans giving goosebumps to everyone watching them while marching through the city, French supporters did the very same thing. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPGg5RVxTno

 

carpathian brigade
Read alsoWhat is behind the menacing march of Hungarian football fans?

EURO2020: The Czech Rep defeats the Netherlands in Puskás Aréna, Budapest

The Czech Republic Victory Football EURO2020 1
The national eleven of the Czech Republic defeated its Dutch opponent in a EURO 2020 round of 16 match played in Budapest’s Puskás Aréna on Sunday evening and qualified for the quarterfinal.
Result:
Czech Republic – Netherlands 2:0 (0:0)
 
According to the poll on UEFA’s website, most people thought that the Netherlands is going to win the round, but the Czech Republic’s national football team took the top scorers by surprise and have managed to win the match with two goals in the second half.
The Czech Republic Victory Football EURO2020 2
Czech Republic – Netherlands match 2021. Jun 27th, Sunday.
Photo: MTI/Tamás Kovács
According to UEFA, “Netherlands were the top scorers in the group stage, netting three times in their victories against Ukraine and North Macedonia with a 2-0 win over Austria sandwiched in between. Those impressive performances all came in Amsterdam” and it seems that the Hungarian stadium was not particularly good for them.

Crazy fans tried to attack Cristiano Ronaldo in Budapest Puskás Arena!

Does UEFA have double standards? – Hungary is on watchlist; other cases neglected

The Czech Republic Victory Football EURO2020 4
Czech Republic – Netherlands match 2021. Jun 27th, Sunday.
Photo: MTI/Tamás Kovács
It is not unheard of though, as in 2016, the Czech team have prevented the Dutch from qualifying for the EURO2016 Championships, UEFA writes.
 
Jaroslav Šilhavý, coach of the Czech Republic team said to UEFA: “I am really proud of my team. We have defeated a great opponent –all of my players were tactically excellent. I am glad we achieved it in front of so many of our fans.”
The Czech Republic Victory Football EURO2020 3
Czech Republic – Netherlands match 2021. Jun 27th, Sunday.
Photo: MTI/Tamás Kovács
Hungary Germany football
Read alsoThe world press celebrates the heroic Hungarian national team

Hungarian, Swiss finance ministers concerned by min corp tax rate within EU

Mihály Varga Fidesz

Finance Minister Mihály Varga met his Swiss counterpart Ueli Maurer, the Finance Ministry has said.

Hungary and Switzerland are in agreement that the introduction of a global minimum corporate tax rate would hold back innovation and economic growth, that the planned minimum rate of 15 percent is too high, and that real economic activities should not be burdened, Varga said after the meeting held on Friday.

Hungary and Switzerland are both committed to tax sovereignty and fair tax competition and share views on a number of points concerning the OECD’s proposed minimum corporate tax rate, he added.

Hungary is prepared to participate in international negotiations on the global minimum corporate tax rate, with the aim of getting as many member states to support the preservation of tax competition, he said.

Now not the time for budget cuts, says Hungarian finance minister

Central bank, govt advance in strategic alliance, in spite of differences

Varga noted that the finance ministers of the Visegrád Group – Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia – had coordinated their stands on the matter at talks on Tuesday and would voice it at OECD and European Union forums.

Removing taxation from the competition among national economies “is a mistake”, he said, adding that Hungary’s 9 percent corporate tax rate supports real, productive investments. Increasing that rate would negatively impact “several thousand” Hungarian companies and cause the loss of jobs, he added.

“The Hungarian government’s crisis management measures are founded on preserving workplaces, incentivising investments and reducing taxes; we do not support tax increases in any forum,” Varga said.

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