Hungary’s 12 April election is set to be one of the year’s most consequential in the EU. Voters will choose a new 199-seat national assembly under the country’s mixed electoral system, with Viktor Orbán facing his biggest electoral challenge after 16 years of uninterrupted power.
Under Orbán, Hungary has repeatedly sought to block EU sanctions against Russia, has vetoed the release of billions of euros in funds to reimburse other EU countries providing military aid to Ukraine and has used Budapest’s veto ability in Brussels as a way to prolong urgent EU decisions.
The far-right Hungarian leader has long been at odds with the EU, which has frozen billions in funding to Budapest over concerns that he has dismantled democratic institutions, eroded judicial independence and overseen widespread official corruption.
In a speech on Saturday, Orbán compared the EU to the repressive Soviet regime that dominated Hungary for over 40 years last century. His message doesn’t seem to be cutting through to voters in the way he may hope. Polls have suggested Orbán and his Fidesz party are trailing behind Péter Magyar’s opposition Tisza party.
Magyar, a former member of Fidesz, has vowed to root out corruption and bring in term limits for future leaders. He has focused on issues such as low wages and rapidly rising living costs that have made Hungary one of the poorest countries in the EU.
On Sunday, Magyar pointed to meetings he held with numerous European leaders at the Munich Security Conference in Germany over the weekend, and said he would put an end to Hungary “drifting out of the European Union” under Orbán.
The EU’s foreign policy chief has denied claims levelled by the US that Europe is facing civilisational erasure, rejecting what she condemned as “fashionable euro-bashing” by Washington.
Kaja Kallas also said the US was discovering that it could not settle the war in Ukraine without Europe’s involvement and consent.
Her remarks capped a difficult three-day Munich Security Conference attended by world leaders and security officials in which the health of the transatlantic alliance, a stronger European pillar inside Nato, and the Ukraine peace talks dominated discussions.
In his speech on Saturday, the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, laced a more diplomatic tone with a firm message that Washington would only work alongside Europe if it changed to accommodate US leadership on mass migration, free trade and greater European defence spending.
Kallas, speaking on the last day of the conference, suggested some of Rubio’s remarks were directed at a domestic audience.
“Euro-bashing” was now “very fashionable” despite all “the good things that Europe actually has to offer,” Kallas said. “When I travel around the world, I see countries that look up to us because we represent values that are still highly regarded.
“Contrary to what some may say, woke, decadent Europe is not facing civilisational erasure. In fact, people still want to join our club, and not just fellow Europeans. In Canada, I was told over 40% of Canadians have an interest in joining the EU.”
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Good morning and welcome to our Europe live blog. The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, is in Hungary today as he continues his tour of key American allies in central Europe after attending the Munich Security Conference.
Rubio is expected to have morning talks with Hungary’s foreign minister, Péter Szijjártó, in Budapest, before meeting the country’s embattled prime minister, Viktor Orbán, who has been lagging in polls ahead of crucial elections on 12 April. There is expected to be a press conference at around 11am local time.
Rubio, who visited Slovakia on a diplomatic visit yesterday, is expected to discuss bilateral relations with Orbán as he tries to bolster ties with US allies in the region.
The secretary of state is also reportedly pushing to shore up energy agreements with both Slovakia and Hungary, with Orbán being a particularly vocal critic of the EU’s green policies. Rubio and Orbán plan to sign a civilian-nuclear cooperation agreement later, according to the Associated Press.
The US president, Donald Trump, threw his support behind Orbán, the EU’s longest-serving leader, earlier this month, saying he had his “complete and total endorsement for re-election”. Orbán has cultivated a strong personal rapport with Trump over the years, including on their shared hard-line immigration policies.
Rubio’s charm offensive follows on from him striking a lighter tone at this year’s MSC in comparison to JD Vance’s aggressive speech last time round, in which the vice-president castigated Europe for its policies on migration and free speech. Instead, Rubio talked of an “intertwined destiny” for the US and Europe, describing America as “a child of Europe, before making a highly conditional offer of a new partnership.
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: theguardian.com
