Iran launched an unprecedented air strike against Israel on Saturday night. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán reacted by convening the Defence Council on Sunday. The PM reassured Hungarian families that the government is committed to protecting them should the conflict escalate.
Hungary can play a key role in potentially warming EU–Türkiye relations. This can be achieved through agenda-setting during Hungary’s presidency of the Council. One such topic could be the modification of the illegal migration prevention deal to tighten regulations and increase financial support to Türkiye.
Hungary strongly opposes Dutch PM Mark Rutte’s candidacy. There are alternatives to Rutte, however; candidates that might not enjoy widespread support as of now but are less divisive. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, for one, recently announced his candidacy for the role. But Hungary’s endorsement of President Iohannis is not self-evident, considering that Klaus accused the Romanian Socialist Democratic Party and the Hungarian minority party UDMR of conspiring ‘to give Transylvania to Hungary’ during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A recent opinion piece published by POLITICO discusses the ineffectiveness of Western sanctions on Russia. The article aligns closely with the stance of the Hungarian government, asserting that punitive measures will not bring about an end to the conflict due to economic and energy interdependencies between Russia and the West.
The Eastern Opening policy has greatly enhanced Hungary’s ability to diversify its natural gas import sources and the commencement of Turkish natural gas deliveries on April 1st, 2024, will amplify this policy’s effectiveness. For further diversification, there’s an emphasized need for a firmer commitment to boost imports from Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.
The Milan appellate court also denied the Hungarian authorities’ extradition request, citing that it would damage the alleged violent perp’s ‘mental health’ as one of the reasons for their controversial decision.
Hungary stands as the sole EU member state purportedly failing to adequately diminish its energy reliance on Russia, a paid advertisement of the US Embassy in Budapest suggests. However, the truth is that numerous EU nations continue to rely on Russian imports, and the Hungarian government is actively striving to diversify its energy sources.
‘The way PM Orbán has redefined Hungarian identity and sought to maintain, develop and foster relationships with Hungarians who were dispossessed of their homeland in the Treaty of Trianon is something I personally have tremendous respect for. ’
With increasing international pressure, Ukraine is set to abandon its list of ‘international sponsors of the war’. For a significant period, this list featured the largest Hungarian bank, OTP, leading to considerable tension between Hungary and Ukraine.
Mihai Tîrnoveanu attempted to display a banner with the writing ‘Transylvania is Romanian land’ at a 15 March celebration attended by Foreign Minister Szijjártó of Hungary in Sepsiszentgyörgy. However, the banner was confiscated before the event, and the wannabe disruptor was arrested by local police.
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.
