BISHKEK, KYRGYZSTAN - NOVEMBER 6: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (L) gives a speech after receiving the Supreme Order of Turkic World by President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov (R) during the 11th Summit of the Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on November 6, 2024. Muhammed Selim Korkutata / Anadolu (Photo by Muhammed Selim Korkutata / ANADOLU / Anadolu via AFP)

Hungary and the Turkic World — On a Thriving Relationship

Recently Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was awarded the Supreme Order of the Turkic World. As he highlighted in his speech, the relationship between Hungary and the Turkic nations is not a thing of the past ‘but a living relationship’. Budapest’s trade with Turkic countries having exceeded 5 billion USD testifies to that.

Activists hold a silent protest inside the COP29 venue to demand that rich nations provide climate finance to developing countries, during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku on November 16, 2024. (Photo by Laurent THOMET / AFP)

Why COP29 Will Likely Fall Short of Expectations

‘Ultimately, COP29 will likely reaffirm what we’ve long known about global climate diplomacy: nations, despite their collective rhetoric, will prioritize their own interests. For wealthier countries in the Global North, the climate agenda offers an opportunity to entrench their geopolitical and economic dominance under the guise of green leadership.’

Workshop of Jan Brueghel the Younger, Paradise with the Creation of Animals (before 1678). Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Germany

Worlds of Law: A Foray into Aquinas

‘There is one sense in which Aquinas certainly did not believe in worlds. This is the sense in which certain Greek philosophers held that there is an infinity of worlds…Aquinas asserts what he calls the “unity of the world”. He claims, too, that the very concept of world denotes a “unity of order”.’

PM Orbán: ‘Patriots are the new reality’

‘A new chapter is unfolding—the patriots have emerged on the horizon, and the era of sovereignty has begun,’ Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán declared at the first general assembly of the Patriots for Europe in Paris. The event, attended by the most prominent figures of the European right, saw Santiago Abascal, leader of Spain’s VOX party, elected as the new chairman of the political group.

A dynamic demonstration of the Leopard 2A4 tank during the visit of Hungarian Minister of Defence Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky and Slovak Minister of Defense Robert Kalinák to the barracks of the György Klapka 1st Armoured Brigade György in Tata on 9 February 2024.

Centralization or Collapse? Draghi’s Controversial Plan to Save the EU — Part III

European countries purchase significant amounts of American weapon systems and military equipment, making US companies the main beneficiaries of the increased defence budgets within NATO. This situation creates tensions and a fragmented will within the EU in processes aimed at strengthening the independence and competitiveness of the European defence industry. It also raises the question of whether Washington’s primary goal is the collective defence of the allies or the profit maximization of American arms manufacturers.

Scenes from the life of Saint Catherine, painted by Masolino. Rome, San Clemente

Hungarian Pilgrims at St Catherine’s Monastery on Mount Sinai

‘The importance of the Orthodox rite of St Catherine’s Monastery at the foot of the 2,300-metre Mount Sinai (Jebel Musa, also known as Horeb) in the Sinai Peninsula grew only after the loss of Jerusalem in 1187 and the fall of the Latin states in the Holy Land in 1291…It is the oldest monastery in the world to have survived in this way, where, among other things, the oldest 4th-century Greek-language manuscript of the Bible, the Codex Siniaticus, has also been preserved.’

Reka_portre_2019_VasadiPhotography

‘It is very important to assess the needs of the local community’ — A Conversation with Réka Vicsacsán

‘We’ve been approached much more often by local American organizations to present Hungarian culture to various schools or other groups as part of a larger, multicultural performance. These collaborations have been so invigorating for our whole team that we’ve come to the conclusion that this could be the path for us. This was one of our missions in the first place: to open up to others.’

Hungarian EU Minister: EPC Could Become a Platform for European Security

‘I have never been to a summit where such a sharp and intense political discourse was generated,’ Hungarian EU Affairs Minister Jánós Bóka said in an interview with Magyar Nemzet. Bóka also revealed that the long-term goal for the future of the European Political Community is for it to become a platform for the European security system.

Somebody Said Revolution Against Migration Court Rulings? We Need It Now!

A new court ruling this week has prevented Italy from transferring migrants to reception centres in Albania under an agreement with the Balkan country. Similar cases highlight that the position of national and European courts on migration is one of the biggest obstacles to addressing this pressing issue.