European Court of Justice

Wizz Air challenged Romanian competitor but will not be happy for this decision

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on Wednesday dismissed a challenge by Hungary’s Wizz Air of European Commission clearance for close to EUR 2m in state aid for Romanian airline TAROM.

The EC had cleared the state aid, in the spring of 2022, to compensate for damage suffered because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The court ruled that the aid was permitted and that the EC had correctly assessed the proportionality of the aid. It rejected Wizz Air’s arguments that the EC had not taken into account previous rescue aid granted to TAROM and that it had underestimated the competitive advantage obtained by TAROM.
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Featured image: depositphotos.com

CJEU Decision: EU and Member States express their unwavering commitment to the strategic partnership with Morocco

Following the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) decision on fisheries and agricultural agreements between the EU and the Kingdom, the European Union (EU) and several Member States have expressed their unwavering commitment to the Union’s strategic partnership with Morocco and their willingness to further strengthen it.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the High Representative of the European Union, Josep Borrell, set the tone, reaffirming in a joint declaration the EU’s commitment to further preserving and strengthening close relations with Morocco in all areas, in accordance with the principle of pacta sunt servanda.

This joint declaration, a rare political act that highlights the importance of Morocco and materializes the importance of the EU’s partnership with the Kingdom, reiterates the “great value” that the EU attaches to “its long-standing, broad and deep strategic partnership with Morocco”.

The two officials also noted that both parties have built, over the years, “a deep friendship and solid and multifaceted cooperation, which we intend to take to a higher level in the weeks and months ahead”.
Several EU countries have followed suit, underlining the strategic nature of the Morocco-EU partnership.

In Madrid, the Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, defended the “strategic partnership” with Morocco and the will to maintain it, while expressing his country’s government’s respect for the CJEU decision.

Mr Albares highlighted the importance of the strategic partnership between the EU and Morocco for both sides, as well as the benefits it has brought to the fisheries and agriculture sectors. He said that the Spanish government will continue to “work with the EU and Morocco to preserve and further develop this privileged relationship”.

For its part, France reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to its exceptional partnership with Morocco and its determination to continue deepening it.

In a statement, the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs stressed that the relationship between the EU and Morocco is, therefore, strategic. It affirms that Paris will continue to work with its European partners to strengthen their economic exchanges and preserve the partnership’s achievements in accordance with international law.

As the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, wrote to His Majesty King Mohammed VI on the occasion of the Fête du Trône, France remains determined to support Morocco’s efforts to promote the economic and social development of the Sahara, which will benefit local populations, said Le Quai d’Orsay.

 

Belgium also reiterated its commitment to the strategic partnership between the European Union and Morocco and its commitment to continue working towards its deepening, expressing its support for the joint declaration of the President of the European Commission and the High Commissioner representative of the European Union for this purpose.

Belgium reaffirms its commitment to the friendship and strategic partnership between the EU and Morocco and will continue to work towards its deepening,’ said the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, External Trade and Development Cooperation on its Account X.

Italy highlighted the “fundamental” strategic partnership between the EU and Morocco on the same wavelength. “The strategic partnership between the EU and Morocco is fundamental, including in the area of agriculture and fisheries,” said Antonio Tajani, Vice-President of the Council of Ministers, Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, on his behalf.

“The European Court should take this into account,” said the Italian foreign minister. “The Italian government, as I will repeat during my visit to Rabat, wants to further strengthen cooperation with Morocco, especially in the fight against illegal immigration,” he added.

The Netherlands, in turn, reiterated its “strong commitment to the strategic partnership between the EU and Morocco,” underlining that it supports the joint statement by the President of the European Commission and the High Commissioner for Representative of the European Union on CJEU judgments.

Similarly, Finland reaffirmed its “strong commitment” to the EU-Morocco strategic partnership.

Expressing Finland’s support for the joint statement by the President of the European Commission and the EU High Representative on the ECJ decision, the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterated, on its account X, the “strong commitment” of the Nordic country in favour of the “strategic partnership between the EU and Morocco”.

Hungary

Hungary, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council, has reiterated its consistent position in favour of strengthening the strategic partnership between the EU and the Kingdom of Morocco as being “in our common interest”.

“We will continue to work to serve these interests by strengthening ties and expanding cooperation with Morocco in new areas.”

The Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement that Budapest is also studying in detail the ECJ’s ruling on the EU-Morocco fisheries and agricultural agreements.

Morocco not impacted by ECJ decision on Agriculture and Fisheries Agreement

Following the European Union Court of Justice’s Friday ruling on the agricultural and fisheries agreements between EU and Morocco, The Kingdom of Morocco considers itself in no way concerned by, since the Kingdom was not involved in any phase of the proceedings, according to the official statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates of Morocco.

Morocco is not a party to this case, which concerns the European Union on the one hand, and ‘polisario’ on the other. Morocco did not take part in any of the procedural phases and, consequently, does not consider itself in any way concerned by the decision, the ministry said.

Nevertheless, the content of this decision contains obvious legal inaccuracies and suspicious errors of fact. This denotes, at best, a total ignorance of the case’s realities, if not a blatant political bias.

The Court has even allowed itself to take the place of the competent UN bodies, contradicting their well-established positions and approaches. 

Morocco demands that the Council, the European Commission and the EU Member States take the necessary measures to respect their international commitments, preserve the achievements of the partnership and provide the Kingdom with the legal certainty to which it is legitimately entitled, as a partner of the EU on several strategic issues.

In this context, Morocco reiterates its constant position not to subscribe to any agreement or legal instrument that does not respect its territorial integrity and national unity.

read also: Hungarian government loses case against Spar: CJEU says Hungary’s price caps on staples violated EU law

Head of the Competition Authority: CJEU ‘humiliates’ Hungarians with Spar ruling

Csaba Balázs Rigó, the head of the Hungarian Competition Office (GVH), said in an interview with the daily Magyar Nemzet published on Tuesday that the recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in favour of supermarket chain Spar “humiliated” Hungarians and showed the court put profit ahead of affordable staples.

In its ruling, issued earlier in September, the CJEU said that price caps Hungary’s government earlier mandated for staples such as sugar, flour, cooking oil, pork and milk, to keep inflation down “undermined fair competition” and were contrary to EU law. The ruling was made after Spar Magyarorszag contested a fine for violating rules on inventory levels for the affected products.

Rigo told Magyar Nemzet that GVH‘s follow-up probe to determine whether Spar Magyarország had complied with voluntary commitments to expand its local supplier base was unrelated to the CJEU ruling.

He said:

From my point of view, there is only one way of looking at the matter, and that is this. The government, be it any government of any country, has a responsibility to protect the people of that country from unexpected economic situations that threaten to have serious consequences. To achieve this objective, the periodic use of the trench warmer was an appropriate instrument. In response, the CJEU has now stated that, as they have said, the supply chain is more important than the consumer, in other words, in an emergency, the interests of the multinationals take precedence over guaranteeing the subsistence needs of Hungarian society. I find this unacceptable. It is also strange why the Hungarian court sent the case to the EU and did not rule on it itself.

As we wrote before, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that price caps Hungary’s government earlier mandated for staples such as sugar, flour, cooking oil, pork, and milk to keep inflation down were contrary to EU law, read details HERE.

After this strong statement, the question arises whether the head of the Competition Authority can make an objective decision on the competition situation in Hungary on this or other issues?

On the other topic we wrote earlier, the CJEU imposed a substantial EUR 200 million fine on Hungary for violating EU legislations. There is a daily additional EUR 1 million fine for failure to comply with the judgement of the CJEU, details HERE.

Hungarian government loses case against Spar: CJEU says Hungary’s price caps on staples violated EU law

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) said that price caps Hungary’s government earlier mandated for staples such as sugar, flour, cooking oil, pork and milk, to keep inflation down were contrary to EU law in a ruling on Thursday.

Price caps against EU law

The price caps were rolled out in February 2022, in the context of the pandemic, and expanded in November 2022, as the result of the war in Ukraine. The decree also required supermarkets to maintain adequate stocks of the affected products.

Supermarket chain Spar Magyarorszag was fined in May 2023 for failing to comply with the stocking rules and appealed the penalty at a local court. That court, in Szeged (SE Hungary), sought a preliminary ruling from the CJEU in light of doubts concerning the compatibility of the rules with the principle of freely setting prices and fair competition.

In its ruling, the CJEU said the government decree on the price caps and inventory levels “undermined fair competition”. The court acknowledged that the government decree was appropriate for combating inflation, but said the measures were “not proportionate”.

“The undermining of free access by traders to the market in conditions of effective competition and the disturbance of the entire supply chain caused by the regulated prices and quantities imposed on those traders go beyond what is necessary to attain the objectives pursued by the decree,” the court said.

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Hungarian official’s harsh words: Hungary ready to transport migrants to Brussels by buses

Should the European Union force Hungary to accept illegal migrants, Hungary will offer to transport them to Brussels once the procedure is completed, a state secretary of the interior ministry told a press conference on Friday.

With the fence on its southern border, Hungary is defending the external borders of the Schengen Area as well as its own, Bence Rétvári said. Hungarian policemen and border hunters have foiled 1 million illegal entry attempts since 2015, he added.

State secretary’s idea to transport migrants to Brussels by buses

Nevertheless, the Court of Justice of the European Union “has imposed a gigantic, disproportionate, unfair fine on Hungary, trying to force it to allow masses of migrants into the country and to abandon its migration policy,” he said.

Rétvári’s Facebook post on the subject: “The buses 🚍 are ready! If Brussels wants more migrants, they can get them ☝🏻.  But we want to protect the border, we want to protect the security ❗️ of Hungary 🇭🇺 ”

Even the displays of the buses read “Röszke -> Brussels” (Röszke is a Hungarian settlement on the Serbian border.)

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Hungary’s fine by Court of Justice of the European Union is swelling by the day

european court of justice hungary fined Court of Justice of the European Union

Recently, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) imposed a substantial EUR 200 million fine on Hungary. There is a daily additional EUR 1 million fine for failure to comply with the judgement of the CJEU. However, it is still not clear if the Hungarian government is willing to pay the lump sum and the additional delay costs. In addition, further fines are on the horizon. 

Hungary fined by the Court of Justice of the European Union

Economx reports that on 13 June, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) imposed a substantial EUR 200 million fine on Hungary for failing to amend its border policy concerning migrants and asylum seekers, as required by EU law. This penalty significantly exceeds the European Commission’s initial request of EUR 7 million and includes a daily fine of EUR 1 million until Hungary complies with the judgment.

european court of justice hungary fined Court of Justice of the European Union
The Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg. Source: Wikimedia Commons/Luxofluxo

Hungarian officials, including PM Viktor Orbán, have condemned the verdict as “outrageous” and “unjust,” with the government indicating that while compliance is inevitable, negotiations with Brussels are ongoing. However, the government has warned that if a resolution is not reached, Hungary will continue its border protection efforts. Moreover, the situation has raised concerns about how the fines will be managed and their effects on Hungary’s relations with the EU.

A growing fine

Hungary faces a daily penalty of EUR 1 million until it complies with a recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union. As the EUR 200 million lump sum is due, Hungary received a letter and a notice with a 45-day payment deadline issued by the Court of Justice of the European Union in mid-July. If unpaid, the European Commission may deduct the fine from Hungary’s EU funds. Despite the finality of the judgment, no clear decision has been made on when or how the fines will be paid. Similar actions were taken against Poland in 2021, where fines were deducted from its EU funds.

Hungary vs Brussels

For years, Hungary has urged Brussels to contribute more to the EU‘s border protection costs, having spent around HUF 700 billion (EUR 1.8 billion)  since 2015, while the European Commission has contributed only HUF 45 billion (EUR 113 million). Zoltán Lomnici, an expert on Hungarian and EU law, noted that Hungary could potentially sue the Commission for compensation for these expenses, a sum far greater than the fines imposed in the recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union. Additionally, Hungary could leverage its veto power on key issues, such as taxation, social security, and foreign policy, to exert pressure on Brussels.

Further fines?

In June, the European Commission identified Hungary among seven EU member states with budget deficits, leading the Council of the European Union to formally initiate procedures against them on 26 July. While this could eventually result in fines, Hungary’s government is aiming to reduce its budget deficit gradually. Gergely Gulyás suggested a potential 2% reduction as a significant step forward. The Ministry of Finance projects a budget deficit of 4.5% this year, and 3.7% next year. The ultimate goal is to bring the deficit below the EU reference value (3% of GDP) by 2026.

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Hungarian government owes Brussels EUR 240 million in fines, given 45 days to act

Viktor Orbán climate

The European Commission has demanded the Hungarian government pay a EUR 200 million fine for non-compliance with European Union common policy, stemming from a 2020 European Court of Justice ruling on asylum and migration regulations. Following a recent court decision, if the government refuses to pay, the amount owed to Brussels could increase by millions each week.

The European Commission (EC) issued a letter and a payment notice to the Hungarian government on 16 July, according to spokesman Christian Wiegand, who spoke to Népszava. The Commission is requesting that Hungary provide information on how it will implement the judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Union regarding asylum rules. Additionally, the EC is calling on the government to pay a fine of EUR 200 million within 45 days. This fine was imposed due to the Orbán government’s refusal to align its asylum regulations with EU policy.

Brussels fines Hungarian government over asylum policy

The issue dates back to 2020 when the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that Hungarian asylum and migration laws were incompatible with EU laws. The court identified several issues:

  • Asylum seekers’ access to the asylum procedure
  • Hungary’s assurance that applicants have a right to legal redress
  • Authorities illegally detaining asylum seekers in transit zones

Although the government has since closed the transit zones, it has not taken further substantive measures to comply with European Union principles. This represents a serious breach of the EU principle of solidarity, for which the European Commission filed a complaint in February 2022, requesting the court impose a lump sum and a daily fine for failure to comply with the verdict.

On 13 June this year, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled against Hungary for its failure to comply with the 2020 decision. The court imposed a EUR 200 million fine on Hungary, with an additional penalty of EUR 1 million for each day of delay in compliance. The court stated that the Hungarian government’s failure to comply is “deliberately circumventing the application of a common EU policy as a whole and constitutes an unprecedented and very serious breach of EU law.”

Tompa transit zone hungarian government
Transit zone of Tompa
Photo: Rebecca Harms/Flickr

Hungary may be deprived of EU funds?

As Népszava points out, the Hungarian government currently owes Brussels a total of EUR 240 million, which will increase by EUR 1 million every day until Hungarian migration and asylum rules are harmonised with EU law.

The latest letter from the European Commission only calls on the Orbán government to pay the initial lump sum of EUR 200 million within the next 45 days. If it fails to do so, another formal notice will be issued, giving the Hungarian government 15 days to comply. If, after a total of 60 days, the money is not received, Brussels will begin to gradually claim the sums, plus interest, from the EU funds Hungary would otherwise be eligible to receive.

As Népszava recalls, after the June ruling, Viktor Orbán described the decision of the Curia as outrageous and unacceptable, stating that Hungary would not give in to the blackmail of Brussels bureaucrats. European Affairs Minister János Bóka commented, “We have received the court’s verdict and we will examine ways and means of complying with a significant part of the judgment, other than the obligation to pay. This work is ongoing.”

Read also:

  • EP: Hungary must comply with EU rules – HERE
  • Hungary does not intend to implement EU migration pact, says official – Read HERE

Hungary fined for EUR 300 million for violating EU legislations – UPDATE: government reaction

european court of justice hungary fined Court of Justice of the European Union

The Court of Justice of the European Union has fined Hungary for 200 million euros for not respecting EU legislations, including those of international asylum and on returning illegal immigrants to their home countries, the CJEU said on Thursday.

Further, the CJEU obliged Hungary to pay a penalty of one million euros for every day of delay in complying with a ruling issued in December 2022, on the country’s breach of the guidelines on asylum and returning immigrants.

UPDATE: Gulyás: CJEU ruling ‘outrageous, unfair and unacceptable’

Gergely Gulyás, the head of the Prime Minister’s Office, called the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union to fine Hungary 200 million euros for not complying with EU legislations on asylum and on returning illegal immigrants to their home countries “outrageous, unfair and unacceptable”.

The minister told a regular press briefing on Thursday the ruling contradicted European Union law, was incompatible with Hungary’s constitution and penalised the country which had rejected illegal migration from the beginning, protecting its own and Europe’s external borders.

This ruling “could never have been passed by a normal court,” he added.

Gulyás pointed out that the decision extended beyond the claim. The European Commission requested a condemnation of 7 million euros and a daily fine of 6 million euros until compliance, whereas the court ordered Hungary to pay a lump sum of 200 million euros and a daily fine of 1 million euros, that is seventy times the fine originally requested.

The ruling goes completely against everything we think about European law, the Hungarian constitution, the protection of external borders and effective action against migration, Gulyás said.

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Instead of funding, questions arrived from the EU to Hungary

eu european union hungary flag priority areas

Hungary is awaiting EUR 13 billion in EU funding, but the European Commission has posed two questions to Hungary instead of releasing the funds.

Last week, the European Commission sent a letter to Budapest, posing two questions to the Hungarian government regarding judicial reform. The ECJ has pointed out that this is the second letter from the European Union’s top authority inquiring about the specifics of the reform.

The Commission has stated that the sooner Hungary responds, the sooner a decision will be made regarding the release of most of the EU funding, which is currently on hold. This funding amounts to approximately EUR 13 billion.

According to Népszava, the correspondence between Budapest and Brussels is not public. However, it is likely that the two questions address the same issues that were presented to the European Parliament.

European officials have raised concerns about the special rules integrated into the Curia’s case-allocation system, which still leave room for manipulation. They also criticised the fact that the right of judges to refer preliminary rulings to the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) could continue to be restricted due to a precedent-setting decision by the Court of Cassation.

The ball is in Hungary’s court

Johannes Hahn, EU Commissioner for the Budget, and Nicolas Schmit, EU Commissioner for Employment and Social Rights, informed Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) that Hungary needs to take action.

Hahn said that the commission aims to enforce the rule of law regulation, which also affects Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe funds. The Austrian commissioner noted that there have been some developments, but they remain insufficient.

Issues related to the independence of the judiciary are hindering the entire seven-year budget, while violations of academic freedom, treatment of refugees and discrimination against the LGBTQ community are rendering an additional EUR 2.5 billion out of reach, as reported by rtl.hu.”

Council of Europe will baulk Hungary to push back asylum seekers to Serbia?

Migration refugee camp EU migration pact

Following a review of the execution of a group of judgments from the European Court of Human Rights related to violations of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) related to asylum seeking, the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers has called on the Hungarian authorities to submit an action plan by June next year.

The group of cases concerns a violation of Article 3 of the ECHR to assess risks of ill-treatment before removing asylum-seeking applicants to Serbia by relying on a general legal presumption of “safe third country” (Ilias and Ahmed; W.A. and others). It also concerns violations of the prohibition of collective expulsion of aliens under Article 4 of Protocol No. 4 to the Convention following the application of the “apprehension and escort” measure introduced by the State Borders Act, authorising the police to remove the asylum-seeking applicants staying illegally in Hungarian territory to the external side of the border fence (on the border with Serbia) without a decision. It furthermore concerns the lack of an effective remedy under Article 13 in respect of the applicants’ removal (Shahzad and H.K.).

The Committee of Ministers reiterates “grave concern” that despite the authorities’ repeated indications that asylum system reform is underway, no information on concrete measures has been communicated and collective expulsions not only continue, but their numbers are reportedly increasing at a “concerning rate.” According to the Hungarian National Police, 158,565 pushbacks to Serbia were reported in 2022. Up to mid-September 2023, the number already stood at approximately 66,000.

Read also:

In its Interim Resolution for Hungary – a form of decision adopted by the Committee of Ministers aimed at overcoming more complex situations requiring special attention – the Committee furthermore “strongly urges” the Hungarian authorities to intensify their efforts to reform the asylum system in order to afford effective access to means of legal entry, in particular border procedures in line with Hungary’s international obligations, and invites them to establish a timeline for the legislative process, to present a draft legislative proposal and to keep the Committee informed of all relevant developments in the legislative process.

The Committee of Ministers also “exhorts” the authorities to terminate, without further delay, the practice of removing asylum-seekers to Serbia pursuant to section 5 of the State Borders Act without their identification or examination of their individual situation.

It reiterates its call on the authorities to introduce an effective remedy providing a person alleging that their expulsion procedure is “collective” in nature with an effective possibility of challenging the expulsion decision by having a sufficiently thorough examination of their complaints conducted by an independent and impartial domestic forum, in line with the Court’s case-law.

Finally, should Hungary achieve no tangible progress by September 2024, the Committee of Ministers envisages taking “new action” to ensure it abides by its obligations deriving from the Court’s judgments in this group of cases.

European Commission refers Hungary to court

European Commission EU funds Hungary Ursula von der Leyen

The European Commission announced on Friday that a decision had been made to refer Hungary to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) regarding rules introducing fixed prices for building materials, hefty penalty payments for non-respect of these fixed prices, and production obligations for building materials and raw materials for the construction sector.

The EC said that these national measures did not comply with the freedom of establishment, and the measure establishing fixed prices and penalty payments had not been notified under the EU Single Market Transparency Directive, under which member states have the obligation to notify draft technical regulations.

According to the statement, national measures introduce fixed prices for specific building materials, such as sand, gravel and cement, and an obligation for businesses to maintain production levels even if economically not sustainable. It added that these measures did not appear justified or proportionate.

The EC initially sent a letter of formal notice in April 2022 followed by a reasoned opinion in January 2023. As the Commission considers that Hungary is still in breach of EU rules, it has decided to refer the case to the CJEU.

We wrote HERE about the falling construction sector in Hungary. In THIS article you may read about a new expressway connecting Győr with the Baroque pearl of the Transdanubia.

Featured image: Ursula von der Leyen, the chairwoman of the European Commission

European heavyweight states join EU lawsuit against Orbán’s child protection law

Budapest Pride child protection

Germany and France join a legal case against Hungary over its child protection legislation. The laws, which experts think are deliberately conflating paedophilia with homosexuality, and have been labelled as “anti-LGBT” have been a hot topic since 2021.

15 EU-member countries and the European Parliament have joined a legal case against Hungary’s child protection laws, Euronews reports. The European Commission referred Hungary to the Court of Justice of the EU last year, as the commission argues that Hungary violates EU values and the fundamental values of individuals.

“We have seen the various press reports. For us it is clear: the Hungarian law violates EU law, fundamental rights, and EU values. We have taken Hungary to the Court of Justice of the European Union, and it is now up to the Court to decide. We do not wish to comment on the steps of the procedure,” a spokesperson for the European Commission told Népszava.

Western European countries have a clear stance

Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Austria, Ireland, Denmark, Malta, Spain, Sweden, Finland, Slovenia, France, Germany and Greece, together with the European Parliament, will act as third parties in the lawsuit filed last year by the European Commission.

As Népszava writes, the countries’ participation in the case is not legally binding, it only has a “symbolic significance”. The contributor countries can express their support for the position of the plaintiff, in this case, the European Parliament.

The Hungarian law prohibits the depiction of homosexuality and gender reassignment in media content and educational material addressed to audiences under 18 years of age. It has been widely criticised for conflating paedophilia with homosexuality.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the Hungarian bill “shameful” in 2021.

“This bill clearly discriminates against people on the basis of their sexual orientation, and it goes against all the fundamental values of the European Union: this is human dignity, it is equality and it’s the human fundamental rights. So, we will not compromise on these principles,”  Euronews quotes von der Leyen as saying.

Hungary is not backing down

Despite the international backlash and now the infringement proceedings, the Hungarian government has not changed its stance on the subject.

As we have previously written, the Hungarian government is already working on a new version of the “child protection” laws. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán recently talked about the issue in his State of the Nation address.

“We don’t care that the world has gone mad, we don’t care what repulsive fads some people indulge in. We do not care what Brussels uses to excuse and explain the inexplicable. This is Hungary! And this is where the strictest child protection system in Europe should be!” said the PM.

It is unclear how the Hungarian government could make the law even stricter, while Hungary is already facing an EU court case, and the EU Commission wants Hungary to withdraw the anti-LGBT measures in order to receive the frozen EU funds.

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Putin would be in serious trouble if he visited Hungary – will he come?

Putin visit Crimea

Russian President Vladimir Putin and PM Viktor Orbán regularly meet with each other every year. In 2022, they met in Moscow at the far ends of a very long table. Orbán later said that he felt something went wrong in Putin’s head, but nobody expected that only weeks later, he would launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In 2023, neither the Russians nor the Hungarians said anything of a possible meeting. Yet.

But the two leaders agreed they would meet regularly with each other to discuss the issues considering their states. By the way, FM Péter Szijjártó and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, met even after the war in Ukraine started last February to sign deals concerning, for example, extra gas deliveries to Hungary.

Here is the very long table of the last Putin-Orbán meeting:

However, if Putin decided to meet with Orbán and he travelled to Hungary for that (last year, they met in Russia), he would be in great trouble. That is because there is an international warrant against him. Thus, he could be arrested provided he travelled to Hungary.

According to Blikk, the International Court of Justice in the Hague issued a warrant against the Russian President. Since Hungary accepts the jurisdiction of the ICJ, authorities should apprehend the Russian leader the moment he touches Hungarian ground. The International Court of Justice charges Putin with kidnapping 16 thousand children from Ukraine. Some Ukrainian parents could get their kids back only with the help of some human rights organisations.

Putin Russian president
Read alsoPutin: region Hungarians live in is old Russian land

Hungarian minister: ‘We will go clear on to the end to protect our children’

children

Justice Minister Judit Varga on Wednesday submitted a counter-appeal to the Court of Justice of the European Union within the EU’s infringement procedure launched against Hungary over its child protection legislation.

“Hungary will keep its end up,” the minister said on Facebook. The Hungarian government sticks to its position that “education is a national competency and parents should have the right to make decisions concerning the upbringing of their children,” the minister said.

“As we have done before, we will go clear on to the end when it comes to protecting our children,” she said. Referring to recent cases, the minister said the child protection law was necessary, adding that “even further measures” would be needed.

children violence
Read alsoHungarian opposition: Let us take action against violence against women

Austria contested the EU’s approval of Hungary’s Paks nuclear power plant upgrade

Paks nuclear power plant

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on Wednesday dismissed a suit by Austria contesting the European Commission’s approval of government investment aid for the upgrade of Hungary’s Paks nuclear power plant.

Austria had argued that Hungary’s direct award of the project to a Russian contactor in the framework of an agreement involving a 10 billion euro credit from Russia violated European Union rules on public procurement. The EC had cleared the aid citing a provision in the Treaties that allows aid for certain economic activities, as long as it “does not adversely affect trading conditions to an extent contrary to the common interest”.

“Assuming that a tender procedure may have had an influence on the amount of the aid, which Austria has not proven, such a factor would not by itself have had any effect on the advantage which that aid constituted for its recipient,” the CJEU said in a statement.

The CJEU also rejected allegations of “disproportionate distortions of competition and unequal treatment”, resulting in the exclusion of producers of renewable energy from the deregulated internal electricity market, noting that member states are free to decide the composition of their own energy mix, while the EC cannot require state financing to be allocated to alternative energy sources.

The EC cleared the aid for the construction of two blocks at the Paks plant, Hungary’s sole commercial source of nuclear energy, in the spring of 2017.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó welcomed the decision, saying the dismissal was a “great victory for Hungary… declaring the Paks upgrade to be fully in line with EU regulations.” Speaking on the sidelines of a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting in Bucharest, Szijjártó said the decision was a boost to Hungarian energy security.

Hungary is taking care to comply with all environmental and professional requirements, and prioritises security in the project, he said. The CJEU decision said that the investment’s permits and funding were fully in line with EU regulations, he said. “We’ve fended off another attack,” he said.

He called on “institutions, banks and countries … wanting to block the construction by unlawful means” to consider the decision and refrain from obstructing a project key to Hungary’s energy security and to maintaining its achievements in curbing household energy costs.

Infringement procedure against Hungary to start due to fuel price cap

fuel Hungary foreigners price cap

The European Commission is bringing lawsuits against Hungary at the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for harming the rights of sexual minorities and EU news broadcasting regulations. The Commission is also launching an infringement procedure against Hungary, saying that banning the access of foreign motorists to fuel at the capped prices available for Hungarians was in violation of the EU principles of free movement and single market.

In its annual report published on Friday, the EC said the Hungarian law banning and restricting access of minors to content representing or promoting deviance from birth gender, gender reassignment or homosexuality was harming the fundamental rights of LGBTQ people. The Hungarian law is discriminating against people based on sexual orientation, and so it is in violation of the EU’s fundamental laws and several regulations, the report said.

In a separate lawsuit, the EC is turning to the CJEU over the Hungarian media authority’s decision to reject the application of Klubradio for a radio frequency based on “highly questionable” reasoning, the report said. The EC said Hungary had set “disproportionate and unclear” conditions to renewing the frequency rights of Klubradio, in violation of EU law, the report said.

The Commission is also launching an infringement procedure against Hungary, saying that

banning the access of foreign motorists to fuel at the capped prices available for Hungarians was in violation of the EU principles of free movement and single market.

Judit Varga, the justice minister, responded as saying that the lawsuit brought against Hungary concerning the country’s child protection law came as a surprise to the government, adding that Hungary had “all along emphasised that the Commission’s accusations are unfounded”.

“From the beginning we stated that ensuring the protection of minors and their unimpeded moral development belongs to the member state’s scope of power,” she said on Facebook. Varga said that by joining the European Union, “Hungary did not surrender its sovereignty, but gave its consent to the joint exercise of certain powers”. Varga said that none of those jointly exercised powers may be used to “change values that are integral to national identity” and that EU membership “in no way affects Hungary’s right to take decisions on the protection of children, in accordance with national identity and within the national scope of power”.

As regards the lawsuit involving Klubrádió, Varga said in her Facebook post that the decision on Klubrádió’s licence was taken by an authority independent of the government and upheld by an independent court.

She added that the government had earlier “clearly addressed” the EC’s concerns on the matter.

“The Hungarian licencing system ensures every applicant equal latitude to access media service opportunities,” said Varga.

Concerning fuel prices, Varga noted that the capped prices were originally introduced across the board but amidst the conditions of inflation and the war “fuel tourism started to put safe supply at such a risk that the government decided to remove cars with foreign plates from the circle of beneficiaries”.

MEP Gyöngyösi comments on the CJEU’s ruling

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Press release

Reaching its verdict last week, the European Court of Justice determined that the rule of law mechanism is compatible with EU law. Justice prevails – one could say, if we didn’t have to wait a year just to state something so obvious or if the European Commission wasn’t playing for time once again. All of this is now undermining the legitimacy of the EU as a democratic community… – press release by MEP Márton Gyöngyösi.

 

For many years now, the Polish and especially the Hungarian government have been ruffling lots of feathers in Europe by repeatedly questioning the EU’s fundamental democratic values while happily spending EU monies without proper safeguards (mainly in Hungary). Built on the good-faith cooperation among member states, an astounded EU has long been watching helplessly how these countries conducted their affairs.

Just as Warsaw and Budapest were turning more and more clearly against their own allies and making ever more distinct efforts to undermine the stability of the community, more and more European politicians hardened their resolve to do something about it. 

Consequently, the rule of law mechanism was devised and introduced in January 2021. However, the Hungarian and the Polish government immediately turned to the CJEU in order to put off the implementation of the mechanism in a financially sensitive period. This move was vital for Viktor Orbán, especially because of the upcoming Hungarian elections.

What happened afterwards however, has unveiled the backdoor deals and democratic deficit that have been paralysing the European Union to this day. While Orbán and the Polish government were clearly making a fool of Europe and they had zero intentions to comply with any norms whatsoever, although they were more than happy to spend the money, the European Court of Justice took its sweet time to finally determine that the rule of law mechanism can be applied. In the meantime, Budapest and Warsaw kept conducting their usual practices.

All over Europe, the ruling was welcomed by many because they felt justice was served and hoped this long, dragged-out affair could finally be brought to an end, thus allowing for the punishment of those who trample upon the rule of law.

However, it might not happen quite so easily, since the European Commission’s first reaction to the ruling was that they would examine it, while EC President Ursula von der Leyen didn’t even show up for the European Parliament’s debate on the rule of law mechanism. I believe her absence is a tell-tale sign, to say the least.

Unfortunately, we must conclude that the express intent of the majority of MEPs, who got their mandates from the citizens of the EU, has been purposely and repeatedly blocked by the much more powerful European Commission, the members of which were appointed to their posts through backdoor deals and therefore have much less democratic legitimacy. These actions lead to increasing tensions that may ultimately undermine European democracy.

If, instead of serving the people of Europe, the Commission continues to silently take sides with certain member state governments despite their rule of law violations, one begins to wonder: do the other EU institutions believe in European democracy the way we do in the European Parliament?

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