The Budapest Balkans Forum 2024 began with captivating discussions about the region’s future, featuring Hungarian government officials such as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Defence Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky, and Minister for EU Affairs János Bóka, among others.

Peter Pellegrini met with his Hungarian counterpart László Kövér, as well as President Tamás Sulyok, and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. He stressed that Hungary and Slovakia both oppose the removal of veto rights of EU Member States, illegal immigration into Europe, and sending troops to Ukraine.

In the latest revelation from the undercover footage shot of Action for Democracy operatives, a progressive activist shared how he would bombard heads of major news outlets and low-level journalists alike with requests to cover the Hungarian election according to their narrative. One of the journalists for the American news agency Associated Press has admitted to having received such requests through emails.

The European Commission proposes starting accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen announced on Tuesday in Strasbourg. Issues being discussed at the European Parliament Plenary also include the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and European security, among others.

Crucial milestones regarding the expansion of the nuclear plant in Paks are the construction of the containment structure and the reactor vessel, of which the former has been completed, while the manufacturing of the latter is set to commence shortly. It is expected to reach another milestone, the ‘first concrete’, by the end of this year.

There were 18 fewer homicides last year in Hungary than in the previous year, with the police solving every new homicide case, and in most cases, apprehending the perpetrator within a few hours.

The right-wing parties of Portugal emerged strengthened from the Sunday early election in Portugal, with the Chega party, led by André Ventura, quadrupling its seats, and the centre-right Democratic Alliance winning, which augurs well for the European Parliament elections this summer.

János Áder, Chairman of the Blue Planet Climate Protection Foundation and his guest discussed the possibilities and challenges of transitioning to a circular economy for the sake of sustainability.

The President greeted the Hungarian people of the Carpathian Basin and the world. He recalled that he had not planned this service, nor had he prepared for this task, but noted that ‘if fate presents unexpected situations and calls for service, one must not shy away from it.’

Additional previously frozen EU funding is set to reach Hungary, this time totalling more than €70 million. However, more than €20 billion funds are still withheld by Brussels.

The Prime Minister of Hungary talked about the need for a global movement ‘advocating for justice, tradition, families, and the people’ at the event.

Hungary and the European Space Agency have signed a framework agreement, paving the way for the Hungarian space research programme to be conducted in collaboration with the agency, making it a unique example in Europe.

The president of MRC Free Speech America reminded that the only criminal charges of the many against President Trump that have any legal merit are the ones related to mishandling classified information. However, it is actually common for Presidents to keep some classified documents in their private residences from their times in office: even Joe Biden did so after leaving the Vice Presidency, yet he was never charged. Mr Schneider also opined that we would not see a criminal trial of Donald Trump before the election, as by the time the Supreme Court hands down its ruling on his immunity case, there would be no time to put him on trial before 5 November.

All nine justices agreed that the 14th Amendment does not give states the power to bar someone from running for federal office, only Congress has that power. Therefore, states cannot remove former President Donald Trump from the ballot in the 2024 presidential election.

This comes in addition to the €10.2 billion of COVID recovery and EU cohesion funds released in December 2023.

According to a recent poll, an absolute majority of Hungarians would prefer to see Donald Trump as the next president of the United States. The survey results indicate that the Hungarian government and Hungarian voters agree that the return of the former Republican president would be more beneficial for Hungary.

Former US President Donad Trump has been frequently speaking of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in complementary terms on the campaign trail lately. The two statesmen met once already: in May 2019, Trump hosted Orbán in the White House.

Addressing the Russo–Ukrainian war in his remarks at the opening event of the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s annual economic conference, Orbán said only ‘a new player, who had no role in the outbreak of this war, can pave a way out,’ clearly alluding to former US President Donald Trump.

During his trip to the United States, Balázs Orbán was hosted by Tucker Carlson, which suggests that the latter may have an interview in the pipeline with the Hungarian Prime Minister’s political director. In addition to launching his latest book, Balázs Orbán travelled to the United States to prepare Viktor Orbán’s visit coming up this week.

The Hungarian foreign minister appeared on a public radio programme on Sunday, and rebutted the statement by President Macron of France, per which he did not rule out deploying NATO troops in defence of Ukraine, pointing out that it is ‘diametrically opposed to joint decisions taken till now’.

The adopted amendments to the Regulation on Wholesale Energy Market Integrity and Transparency, designed to respond to the energy crisis, cover new trading practices such as algorithmic trading and strengthen reporting and monitoring requirements to protect consumers from market abuse.

Didier Reynders told the European Parliament that Hungary will not receive any funds from the Recovery Fund until specific reforms are enacted. The challenge for Hungary lies in the continual imposition of new conditions by Brussels, some of which are impossible to meet.

According to press reports, Donald Trump and Viktor Orbán are scheduled to meet in Florida on 8 March. As the perhaps two most prominent figures of the international right, they are gearing up for crucial elections in 2024, and their alliance is deemed more significant than ever.

In an interview with Italian public television, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó stated that he is appalled by how the Italian media has presented the Salis case, portraying the Antifa activist who beat innocent people last year as a martyr.

The V4 countries convened for a summit on 27 February, a gathering of paramount importance regarding the future trajectory of cooperation. The leaders of the allied states reached a unanimous agreement on the necessity to uphold cooperation in areas of common interests, notwithstanding differences of opinion.

The event featured insightful and fascinating discussions on the possible revival of classical education, the dangers of political activism in the classroom, and the perils of the use of artificial intelligence in teaching.

Sulyok is a ‘respected jurist’, who has never been a politician, and who had refused to join the state party before 1990, analyst Levente Szikra reminded in an interview with public Kossuth radio,

In a rare show of good faith and positivity, US Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman attended a joint exercise of American and Hungarian soldiers in Szentes, Hungary. At the event, he emphasized the importance of the military alliance between the two nations.

The Hungarian National Assembly has elected Tamás Sulyok, formerly President of the Constitutional Court, as the new President of Hungary.

The Hungarian National Assembly approved the ratification of Sweden’s accession to NATO on 26 February. It is now up to the President of the Republic to sign the agreement, which will officially grant Sweden full membership in the defence alliance.