The former Soviet satellite states which mainly joined the EU in 2004 are the main bulwarks against the revival of ideologies with their roots in communist thinking.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on 18 July that the next EPC summit will be held in Hungary this year, and in Albania and Denmark next year.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has defended Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s new EP political group, Patriots for Europe (PfE), stating that it is not a pro-Putin group. Meanwhile, the mainstream EP political groups are working to completely exclude PfE MEPs from parliamentary work for the next five years.
Two elections this week at the Council of Europe will determine the institution’s future orientation. On Tuesday, 25 June the new Secretary General of the Council of Europe will be elected for a five-year term. On Wednesday, 26 June three new judges for the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) will be elected for a nine-year term. Senior Research Fellow at the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ) Nicolas Bauer points out the risk of a leftist takeover.
Hungary’s Honorary Consulate has opened in Monaco, allowing Hungarians to vote in the European Parliament elections on 9 June at a record of 147 foreign locations. Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó pointed out the significance of 9 June, calling it possibly the most crucial day in modern European history.
During a roundtable discussion organized by the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) on Thursday in Budapest, experts dissected Hungary’s role and opportunities within the EU. They agreed that one of the key topics during Hungary’s EU presidency should be the integration of the Western Balkans. They also discussed the war in Ukraine, the Eastern opening, and the bureaucracy in Brussels, among other topics.
During the interview, the Prime Minister remarked that Europe is playing with fire, teetering on the brink between peace and war. He criticized European leaders for two years of indecision regarding strategy and sanctions, drifting not from war towards peace but from peace towards war. He expressed deep concern for the future of Europe, stating it is extremely dangerous.
‘Is Pope Francis correct to suggest that this is a war Ukraine cannot win, and so, it should start seeking a truce with Russia? Ending the war, even a ceasefire, is not an act of cowardice, especially when there is no end in sight.’
Despite concessions from the European Commission, farmer protests across Europe show no signs of abating. On 22 February, farmers from the Visegrád Group countries will hold a joint demonstration to protest against EU agricultural policies.
Brussels recently unveiled its climate target, adjusted in the wake of the farmer protests. However, the ambitious plan is still founded on a flawed approach: the EU is prioritizing mitigation over adaptation, imposing a greater financial burden on member states than what is truly necessary.
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.
