VIDEO: Counter-protester interrupts start of Viktor Orbán’s press conference in Strasbourg – UPDATE

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán answered journalists’ questions for two hours in the European Parliament on Tuesday afternoon. The Hungarian prime minister held a press conference the day before he was due to present the programme of the Hungarian presidency in the EP.

Hungary’s EU presidency to table five-year competitiveness deal

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said the deterioration of Europe’s competitiveness was a “serious challenge” and Hungary’s presidency of the Council of the European Union would propose a new competitiveness deal, speaking at a press conference in Strasbourg on Tuesday.

Orbán said that challenge had to be addressed in the context of the war in Ukraine and conflicts in the Middle East and in Africa that were at risk of escalating. He also pointed to security threats not seen since the 2015 migration crisis that were putting pressure on the EU’s passport-free Schengen zone.

Hungary’s EU presidency will propose a new European competitiveness deal, extending for five years, at an informal summit in Budapest on November 8, Orbán said. He added that a reduction in administrative burdens and overregulation, affordable energy prices, green industrial policy and a strengthening of the internal market were part of the new competitiveness deal. He also said that barriers to the movement of goods and services needed to be removed, while EU capital markets had to be bolstered to prevent savings from flowing to investments in the United States, and a policy of connectivity advanced.

He said the EU needed change and Hungary’s EU presidency wanted to be a catalyst for that change.

Orbán noted that he was in Strasbourg to present the programme for Hungary’s EU presidency to MEPs on Wednesday. He said that it was the second time he had personally headed Hungary’s EU presidency and recalled that the first time, in 2011, involved dealing with the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the Arab Spring and Fukushima. Hungary’s next EU presidency is “written in my calendar, as optimism is important”, he added.

He said Hungary’s EU presidency, given the country’s size, could point out problems and make recommendations, but European institutions and big member states would have to take the decisions. Improving competitiveness is the focus of Hungary’s EU presidency, he added.

The United States and China have outpaced Europe’s economic growth for two decades, while Europe’s share of global trade has declined, he said. He added that companies in the EU had to pay double or triple what their counterparts in the US paid for electricity and four or five times as much for gas.

He said that European companies spend half as much on R+D as in the US.

Addressing demographic trends, Orbán said the scale of Europe’s labour force didn’t support the continent’s output growth. He added that improving productivity was doubly important as earlier and had to exceed the pace of development in the US.

Orbán called an EU decision to levy punitive tariffs on Chinese EVs “an absurdity” as local automotive industry companies had protested the measure. He added that just ten of the EU’s 27 member states, accounting for 45 percent of the EU’s residents, had backed the move.

Orbán: Migration cannot be stopped without ‘external hotspots’

Illegal migration cannot be stopped without setting up hotspots outside the European Union, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told a press conference in Strasbourg on Tuesday, adding that those who had made it to the EU “will never leave”.

The only way to stop migration is by forging a consensus between member states on obliging those wanting to enter the bloc to “stop at the border, request admission, and they’re not allowed to enter the EU until their request is assessed”. “If we can’t achieve that, we will never stop migration,” he said.

No government is ready to “round up” migrants already within the borders and expel them from the EU, he said. “The only migrants who won’t stay are the ones we don’t allow in,” Orbán said.

 Security guards had to detain opposition protester

Orbán had just started the central part of his speech when Márton Gyekiczki, a member of the DK youth organisation, rushed to his table and shouted several times:

How much did you betray the country for, Prime Minister?

Photo: MTI

He repeated this several times and then shouted on the way out that the Hungarian Prime Minister had sold Hungary to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

How much did [PM’s political director] Balázs Orbán get to betray the country, Mr Prime Minister?”

related article: Official of Orbán cabinet says they would NOT have defended Hungary in case of a Russian invasion

After the DK activist was detained and led out by guards, Orbán responded that in Hungarian politics, calling someone a villain only means that you disagree with them. Orbán said Hungarian was a “direct language and communication is rather curt. If a politician calls the other a swindler, that is the equivalent of ‘I disagree'”. He said heckling was an everyday occurrence in Hungary.

Here’s the video showing how a DK local council member interrupted Orbán’s press conference in Strasbourg.

The event was disrupted by Márton Gyekiczki, a DK councilor from Érd, who threw paper notes and yelled, “How much did you betray the country for, Mr. Prime Minister?”… pic.twitter.com/dZiVhtfFnd

— Pete (@splendid_pete) October 8, 2024

The clear statement of Balázs Orbán, criticised by many:

“Based precisely on ’56, we probably would not have done what President Zelensky did 2.5 years ago, because it is irresponsible, because one can see that he took his country into a war of defense”

A video of Balázs Orbán’s interview, with English subtitles

Related article: Is Hungary’s NATO membership at risk? German-French démarche after PM Orbán’s political director’s cowardly words

Orbán proposes Schengen summit to handle migration

The Hungarian presidency of the European Union proposes introducing a system of Schengen summits to tackle the issue of migration, PM Orbán said.

Orbán told a presser presenting the EU presidency’s programmme that the EU did not have a successful common migration policy and member states were trying to protect themselves individually.

At the same time those individual attempts were threatening to “dismantle” the Schengen system, so “one large common decision is needed” instead, he said.

Orbán said the Hungarian presidency’s proposal was that similarly to the eurozone countries’ summits, the leaders of Schengen countries should regularly meet, and they should manage the Schengen borders at the highest political level together “similarly to how the euro is being managed”.

Europe will never be complete without integration of Balkans

Illegal migration cannot be stopped without setting up hotspots outside the European Union, Orban said.

The only way to stop migration is by forging a consensus between member states on obliging those wanting to enter the bloc to “stop at the border, request admission, and they’re not allowed to enter the EU until their request is assessed”. “If we can’t achieve that, we will never stop migration,” he said.

No government is ready to “round up” migrants already within the borders and expel them from the EU, he said. “The only migrants who won’t stay are the ones we don’t allow in,” Orban said.

Orban noted that he had represented that stance consistently since 2015, “and I was called an idiot and evil, but ultimately, everyone will come around to that standpoint.”

The EU’s migration policy “is clearly not working”, and illegal migration was spawning growing anti-Semitism, violence against women and homophobia, he said.

Orban said the EU did not have a successful common migration policy and member states were trying to protect themselves individually.

At the same time those individual attempts were threatening to “dismantle” the Schengen system, so “one large common decision is needed” instead, he said.

Orban said the Hungarian presidency’s proposal was that similarly to the eurozone countries’ summits, the leaders of Schengen countries should regularly meet, and they should manage the Schengen borders at the highest political level together, “similarly to how the euro is being managed”.

Photo: MTI

Moving on to the EU’s enlargement, Orbán said Europe will never be complete without the integration of the Balkans, which is why the Hungarian presidency has called a European Union and Western Balkans summit.

EU defence policy and strengthening the bloc’s technological foundations were on the presidency’s agenda and they will be addressed at an informal meeting in Budapest on November 7, he said.

“We promised to the Western Balkans countries twenty years ago that they will be given entry, and it is time to fulfil the promise,”

he said, adding that the Hungarian presidency has also called a summit of the Western Balkans and the European Union.

Enlargement must be merit-based, he said, adding that without Serbia no enlargement will be successful, because the Western Balkans countries cannot be integrated without Serbia, a country “with such a weight and strength that the Balkans cannot be stabilised without it”.

Hungary is working to make progress in that regard, too, he said.

Orbán said the Hungarian presidency also addressed agriculture. The planning of the next financial cycle’s directions has started, and so the mapping of its agricultural policy. The goal is to create a competitive, crisis-resistant and farmer-friendly European agriculture, he said.

If the programme points of the Hungarian presidency are fulfilled, then its slogan, “Make Europe Great Again”, will come to life, he added.

US elections

Commenting on the US elections, Orbán said: “If Trump comes back, we will open several bottles of champagne.” He welcomed that the informal meeting of EU leaders in Budapest was scheduled two days after the election, offering an opportunity to plan the next steps.

Should Trump be elected, “we must take seriously his statements that he will not wait until his inauguration to start handling the war and possible peace in Ukraine. We European leaders will not have 2-3 months between the election and the start of term of the next US president,” Orbán said.

EUR 35 billion loan to Ukraine

In response to a question about why Hungary was not supporting a EUR 35 billion loan to Ukraine, and whether Hungary would fight against Russian President Putin, he said Hungary was carrying out the greatest humanitarian scheme of its history. A large number of Ukrainians have arrived and they have been immediately given asylum, with several tens of thousands of Ukrainians now living in Hungary. Ukrainian schools have been opened in Hungary despite the fact that Hungarian schools have been closed in Ukraine. “We are doing everything that a Christian country can do to help a neighbouring country,” he added.

Orbán said there was a debate about what should be the expected behaviour in the European Union, and Hungary’s opinion differed from most other EU countries’. Hungary wants to see a ceasefire as soon as possible because this war cannot be won on the battlefield, he added. If the war cannot be won in the battlefield, then talks are needed, a ceasefire is needed and lives must be saved, he said. “This is what Hungary wants to help with,” he added. Orbán said communication was viewed as a sin in the EU, yet the war situation cannot be successfully handled without it. Communication is needed, with the involvement of as many countries that can achieve a ceasefire as possible, he added. “Currently we are in a strong minority, but that is no reason for us to give up our clear position,” he said.

European politics

Orbán said there was a great change under way in European politics. A European elite consisting of the Left, liberals and central right call themselves the mainstream. But the people are increasingly dissatisfied with their performance, and the mainstream is surrounded by a circle of protests, he added. People do not agree with the war, they want peace, they do not agree with migration, they do not want to allow the illegal migrants to enter, they do not agree with the economic policy, the agriculture is being damaged, and the companies are over-regulated, with purchasing power decreasing, he said.

“Considering that we live in democracy, these voices find their representatives and new parties, new players appear, with increasing weight,” he said.

Orbán called for calm and common sense, saying that patriots should not be excluded but invited to join.

He said the Brussels mainstream, the bureaucrats, must decide whether they wanted to defend the status quo or listen to the people. The PfE was one of the symptoms, and if the Brussels elite refuses change, they must be pushed to the side.

In response to a question, Orbán said the member states should help each other instead of blocking each other.

He said migration represented a “slap in the face” for EU unity because it highlighted that “we differ from each other in many ways”.

Orbán said that instead of allowing each member state to follow its own migration policy, “the big boys decided that a common migration policy is needed.”

He added that this policy must be followed even by those who do not want it, and Hungary must pay 200 million euros just because it does not want to allow migrants into the country.

Orbán said that with Brexit, the balance was lost between those supporting a centralised, federalist EU and those supporting sovereignty. “This situation has resulted in a growing number of conflicts,” he said, adding that while the Brits were still in the EU, there was no rule of law procedure. The supporters of sovereignty do not want confrontation, but to maintain the former balance, refusing centralisation, he said.

He said he was representing Hungary’s national interests and wanted to agree with all other country leaders on this basis. He said he was not representing a globalist elite or European bureocrats, he was standing with both feet on the ground, as the representative of national interests.

Orbán said Hungary did not agree with the EU’s approach to migration, but said that a compromise must be found sooner or later.

He added that there would always be member states that did not agree with the common migration policy and would not be eble to comply with the decisions of the European Commission or court.

An acceptable solution would be an opt-out from common decisions for member countries that “cannot follow the mainstream”, Orban said, “otherwise the EU will be damaged”. He added that this was why he was glad to see the Netherlands, one of the founding members of the EU, to be the first to bring up the possibility of an opt-out.

Commenting on the “gigantic” fine imposed on Hungary, he said talks with the European Commission have stalled.

In response to a question about when Hungary would start buses transporting migrants to Brussels, he said “the time will come, it is not far away.” He said Hungary would respect European regulations and if asylum seekers in Hungary wanted to go to Brussels, Hungary would help them.

Commenting on criticism he received for his “peace mission” and asked if he felt isolated in the EU, he said it was impossible to be isolated in the EU. He said they had “dreams like that in the Left” but added that when there was an attempt to isolate Austria, it became ridiculous.

He said the start of the Hungarian presidency posed a great challenge. There were two possibilities: one was a bureaucratic Hungarian presidency, but Orban said he decided to view it as a political presidency, with respect to the limitations.

“We have a very friendly attitude to the EU,” he said in response to another question. The EU is made up of nation states, there is no such thing as an EU citizen, but an Italian, French, Hungarian, Dutch citizen. They must be represented, which is not a hostile behavious but a normal approach, he added.

In response to a question on the conditionality procedure, he said Hungary wanted to reach an agreement. “There are good examples, currently Hungary has 12 billion euros on its account, which can be continually incorporated in Hungarian economy, he said, adding that he trusted that a further agreement could be reached.

Erasmus and Horizon programs

Commenting on the Erasmus and Horizon programs, he said Hungary wanted to agree with the Commission to restore these possibilities. At the same time, he said Hungary had set up its own systems. The Pannonia scheme has been set up in place of Erasmus, and a separate research scheme has been set up in place of Horizon.

He branded it “ugly blackmail” that Hungarian students are refused EU support.

Other questions

In response to a question about his relationship with Putin, Orbán said “he is the Russian president and I am the prime minister of Hungary, that is the relationship”.

In response to another question, he said the Schengen membership of Romania and Bulgaria was kept on the agenda. He said he would make every effort to convince everyone that it would greatly benefit the EU. The two countries are ready to protect the external borders, he added.

Orban also said in response to a question that the Hungarian economy was very transparent towards the Russian economy and in areas not affected by sanctions, Hungary tries to cooperate with Russia. He also said that western countries had bought 8.5 billion dollars worth of energy from Russia since the start of the war.

“What we do is completely transparent, what the others do is hypocrisy. Stop criticising Hungary”, Orban said.

He reiterated that no migrant camp will be set up in Hungary.

Asked about an MBH loan to Spain’s VOX party, he said he was involved in politics and not with who lends money to whom, which is private business.

He also said that certain countries had special campaign financing rules, and parties must take out loans. In Hungary, it is the other way round, and if a party wants to run at the election, it receives support from the state budget.

If someone wants to take out a loan in Hungary from a Hungarian bank, the government will have no business with it, because Hungary is a free country, he said.

Commenting on the issue of a ceasefire in Ukraine, he said in response to a question, that during his talks in July he found that both the Russian and the Ukrainian leaders believe time works for them and they do not want a ceasefire and peace. This is bad for Europe, Orban said. Because the sides are unwilling to take steps, international efforts are needed to continually push the sides towards talks, he added.

He said he believed the majority of the world was pro-peace and Europe was pro-war, or “to put it more respecfully, Europe has taken a longer road to peace”.

EP Serbia delegation

In response to a question, Orbán said it was regrettable that a Greek person had been elected instead of a Hungarian one into the EP Serbia delegation, but added that the Greek MEP also deserved the position. He criticised the fact that the Hungarian opposition parties did not support the Hungarian nominee.