Weber: Talks with Orbán constructive, not all problems solved

Manfred Weber, the group leader of the European People’s Party (EPP), said in Budapest on Tuesday that his talks with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán had been constructive and covered several issues, but some problems had remained unresolved.

EPP has clear fundamental values which have to be respected by all EPP member parties, including Hungary’s ruling Fidesz, Weber told journalists during his visit to the Great Synagogue in Dohany Street.

“As a dialogue between the two sides is still under way, I cannot tell you what concrete steps the EPP is going to take in the near future,” he said.

The EPP group consists of 80 member parties, of which 13 initiated excluding Fidesz or suspending its membership, he said.

Weber welcomed the Hungarian government’s decision to end the advertising campaign criticising the European Union’s migration policies.

It is essential for Fidesz to promise not to mount such campaigns in future, he said.

The group leader said it would be an appropriate solution for Orbán to apologise for “problems” he had caused to EPP member parties.