Hungary’s industrial output grew by 6.4 per cent year-on-year in April, the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) announced. However, adjusted to working days, the data actually shows a 2.4 per cent decline. In their statement the Ministry for National Economy explained that the Hungarian industry is still being weighed down by a sluggish European economy, curtailed by the war in Ukraine.
The 4 June conference organized by the Climate Policy Institute of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium focused on ESG and its effects on society, the economy, business and social perceptions.
The majority of the EU tries to alleviate the demographic and labour market challenges by promoting digitalization, increasing the activity of the over-65 age group and pushing back the retirement age, as well as employing foreign workers. Hungary, however, chose another path that aims to strengthen the families.
‘Although the seemingly insurmountable challenge of these rapid changes may make us justifiably depressed, we need to think about the future of our children. Although they didn’t choose these changes, it is their lives that will be shaped by the processes that are starting now. It is up to us to make our voices heard—and the EP and Hungarian municipal elections will be a good opportunity to do so.’
Despite slipping slightly from first place according to the exit polls, Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom (PVV) managed to significantly increase the number of MEPs it is to send to the EP on the first day of the European elections. PVV will have seven seats in the new EP, with Wilders expressing hope that the official results, to be announced on 9 June, will confirm that his party came in first.
According to the E21 initiative, recently launched with the participation of public, scientific, and economic experts to support Hungary’s green transition, the government’s Energy Efficiency Obligation Scheme incentivizes designated participants in the domestic energy market to save energy. Improving energy efficiency in the Hungarian economy is a vital national interest and contributes to the country’s competitiveness, E21 noted in a statement issued after their meeting today.
‘States are free to reject decisions or judgements that are inconsistent with the treaties they signed,’ Senior Research Fellow at the European Centre for Law and Justice Nicolas Bauer told Hungarian Conservative.
‘On multiple occasions, on camera, Jakab was explained that he is currently part of the legislative branch of the government, and he is in the running to lead the executive, thus he has no business giving out prison sentences, because that is under the purview of the judicial branch. It is unclear how much of it sunk in for young Péter, but he kept going with his simplistic shtick.’
The last-minute withdrawal of the Fidesz candidate might propel Dávid Vitézy into the lead only two days ahead of the elections.
After nearly twenty years, Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport is back in the ownership of the Hungarian state. The announcement was made by Minister of National Economy Márton Nagy, who emphasized in a statement that the Hungarian government will work to make the airport one of the best in the world.
Avi Benlolo of The Abraham Global Peace Initiative directed the film which showcases the terror of the villains, and the bravery of the heroes of the fateful 7 October attacks. Before the screening, distinguished guests, such as Israeli Ambassador to Hungary Yacov Hadas-Handelsman made short speeches.
In his first video appearance since being shot on May 15, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico blamed the opposition and George Soros for the attempt on his life. The opposition party Progressive Slovakia swiftly rejected these accusations, stating that Fico’s claims only exacerbate the already tense situation.
The Hungarian MVM Group is set to buy a stake in Shah Deniz, one of the world’s largest natural gas fields, in Azerbaijan. This move will significantly strengthen Hungary’s energy supply and represents another major step towards independence from Russian energy sources.
With 170 exhibitors, 150 stands, and over a thousand book signings, as well as panel discussions, book launches, and concerts, the 95th Book Week will welcome the public from 13 to 16 June at Vörösmarty and Vigadó Squares, and along the Danube Promenade in Budapest.
Keleti pioneered theatrical photography, capturing every significant moment of Hungarian stages. She documented rehearsal processes, the triumphs of premieres, and ventured behind the scenes.
‘I am convinced that the current leadership in Brussels does not take into account the opinion or expectations of the majority of European people, and we even see that they represent non-European interests in Brussels on key issues, such as illegal migration, the war in Ukraine or the EU’s competitiveness,’ Hungarian Member of the European Parliament Balázs Hidvéghi stated in an interview with Hungarian Conservative.
Despite the significant support Ukraine receives from its Western allies, the Russian military industry seems to be still superior in terms of quantities. According to reports, five Russian responses are received for every shot fired by Ukraine. In addition, Ukraine’s Western allies produce artillery ammunition not only more expensively but at a much slower rate than Russia. According to predictions, in 2024, Russia will be able to produce 4.5 million artillery shells, while the EU and the US together only about 1.3 million.
‘The flaw in the progressive hyper focus on moral rights is that it removes the ability of reality testing outside the subjective experience. Therefore, it feeds our narcissistic tendencies, which in turn enhances destructive behaviour, anxiety, depression, and above all, undermines mental resilience. Psychologically speaking, focusing only on our moral beliefs gives rise to many problems. First and foremost, human identity can only be stable if it is embedded in an external world.’
At the award ceremony held in Singapore on 30 May, Hungarian real estate projects won three gold and one silver medal. The MOL Campus secured two first prizes, winning gold in both the office building and the environmental architecture categories.
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.
A few days after an Afghan immigrant killed a policeman with a knife and injured several others in Mannheim, another knife attack has taken place in the German city. This time, the victim was a politician from the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
Azahriah will be the first Hungarian singer in a long time to perform in the pre-headlining slot. The young talent recently filled the Puskás Arena three times in a row, and will now perform on the main stage of Sziget to a swelling audience of 60–70,000 people.
Marco Rossi’s men lost to the Irish team who, unlike Hungary, did not qualify for Euro 2024. The Irish scored the winner in the 92nd minute after a quick counterattack following a Hungarian corner, setting the final 2–1 scoreline.
‘The character of the educator is a fundamental determinant of the personal development of students, and in addition to professional knowledge, it has therefore been important throughout the centuries to be able to set an example also in the personality of the teacher.’
In the first 24 hours after the historic guilty verdict, President Trump’s campaign raised a whopping $52.8 million, according to the announcement of the campaign itself. If this is true, that would be a shattering new record, beating out the $26 million the Biden camp raised in one day in August 2020, after they announced that Kamala Harris would be their Vice Presidential nominee, the first black female candidate on a presidential ticket.
‘You have to have different levels of political engagement. You have to win at different levels, the intellectual level, the battle of ideas level, you’ve got to win at this level. And then you’ve got the next level down, that you’ve got to win on policy, and win the debate politically, and then politicians translate these ideas into their own language and then they have to be able to convey that message to the voters. These are two different roles, but they are also overlapping. Like Edmund Burke, one of the greatest conservative thinkers, was also an active politician.’
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán gave an interview to the Italian newspaper Il Giornale, in which he stressed that the current European Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen has failed regarding everything from war to agriculture. He emphasized that there is no other choice: the European right must take over after the elections.
‘Today, we must achieve what Prime Minister István Tisza could not: prevent Hungary from being drawn into another European war,’ Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stressed in his speech on the Day of National Unity. 4 June marks one of the darkest days in Hungarian history: signed on this day in 1920, the Treaty of Trianon caused Hungary to lose about two-thirds of its territory and one-third of its population.
According to the decision of World Athletics (WA), Budapest will be the venue for the first-ever World Athletics Ultimate Championship in 2026. WA President Sebastian Coe said that the decision was made partly because of the success of last year’s World Athletics Championship. In 2026, the Hungarian capital will also host the Champions League final.
‘I was on stage already before I could have any inhibitions. That’s not to say that I don’t have them in other areas, but I feel lucky that I was given this way of life. It was put in front of me, and I couldn’t imagine my life without it. It gives me security.’
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.