German newspaper Die Welt has obtained exclusive information on the planned composition of Ursula von der Leyen’s next Commission. Citing senior EU officials, the article outlines the potential commissioner-designates for key posts, presenting a scenario that could be bittersweet for Hungary over the next five years.
Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto’s recent remarks voicing concern about the Ukrainian incursion into Russian territory have drawn ire from Italian commentators. Under Giorgia Meloni’s leadership Italy has consistently backed Ukraine in both rhetoric and material support. However, her public position also reflects the constraints imposed by her governing coalition, which includes pro-Russia politicians. Meloni’s balancing act requires deft political manoeuvring as she seeks to maintain support for Ukraine while navigating a divided public opinion at home.
‘Families are the foundation for coherent political communities. Indeed, they are the foundation for nations. Nations are usually tied together by a set of common origins based on history, geography, traditions, and blood ties. A person’s ties to their nation are usually familial ties, primarily shaped by the home they grow up in.’
In his Facebook post, Minister for European Union Affairs János Bóka criticized the EU Commission for its mandate concerning Hungary to maintain the capacity to process nearly 8,000 foreign nationals at the border, as per the controversial EU Migration Pact passed by the EU Parliament this April.
The director of the Algerian Olympic and Sports Committee claims that the ‘Zionist lobby’ is trying to break controversial boxer Imane Khelif’s spirit in what he calls an ‘attempt to stop an Arab or Muslim girl from rising in the ranks of female boxing’. Khelif made headlines after allegations emerged that she has XY chromosomes, a characteristic of biological males, while competing in the 66 kg women’s category at the Paris Olympics.
According to the new Rule of Law Report released by the European Commission on 24 July, Italy, Hungary, and Slovakia performed poorly regarding the continued decline in democratic standards threatening the effective prosecution of corruption, the independence of the judicial system, and the safety of journalists.
Mainstream political groups in the European Parliament have once again defied the will of the electorate, preventing Patriots for Europe (PfE), the EP’s third largest group, from gaining top jobs in parliamentary committees. Kinga Gál, PfE’s First Vice-Chairman, stated that they will challenge the decision at the Conference of Presidents and did not rule out taking the case to the EU’s top court.
Italian antifascist-attacker-turned-MEP Ilaria Salis was quick to criticize Hungary in her very first post on X as a member of the European Parliament, accusing Budapest of not having guaranteed her fundamental rights due to her political beliefs as an antifascist while she was in custody and under house arrest. Zoltán Kovács, Hungarian State Secretary for International Communication and Relations, responded by calling on Salis’ defenders to ‘stop whitewashing a communist terrorist who led a group that almost killed someone on the streets of Budapest in broad daylight.’
On 18 July the European Parliament re-elected European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen with 401 votes in favour. In her speech before the vote, von der Leyen made numerous political promises for the next five years but also, of course, criticized Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s peace mission.
The majority of Hungarians agree with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and the Hungarian government in not supporting Ursula von der Leyen’s second term as President of the European Commission. The vote in the European Parliament will take place on Thursday, 18 July, but it is far from certain that the current president will secure the 361 votes needed for re-election.
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.