At the informal European Council meeting in Hungary, the leaders of the member states adopted the Budapest Declaration, which focuses on measures to boos the EU’s competitiveness. The decision was announced by Viktor Orbán, who highlighted that there is a strong consensus on the need to ‘make Europe great again’.
The second ministerial-level meeting of the EU accession conference with Albania was held in Luxembourg on 15 October. The aim of the meeting was to start accession negotiations with Albania and open Cluster 1; Tirana has thus taken another step forward on the road to European integration.
‘At the end of this struggle, we will turn Paris around, reclaim Warsaw, and become the largest political force in Europe. Then we will take control of Brussels politics and restore Europe to greatness—strong, prosperous, and free once again,’ Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán emphasized in his speech at Matteo Salvini’s League rally.
James Carafano is a leading expert in national security and foreign policy challenges, an accomplished historian and teacher, as well as a prolific writer and researcher. He currently serves as Senior Counselor to the President and E.W. Richardson Fellow at The Heritage Foundation. He sat down with conservative outlet Mandiner while he was in Budapest for the Fourth Danube–Heritage Geopolitical Summit in September.
Former President of Hungary Katalin Novák announced in early September that she will take on new responsibilities, continuing to address global demographic challenges as co-founder and co-CEO of the non-profit organization XY Worldwide. Novák recently met with Elon Musk and Giorgia Meloni, where they discussed the possibility of the American billionaire supporting her new initiative.
While in Budapest, Matteo Salvini also met with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of Hungary on Friday. Salvini is currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Transport of Italy. He is the leader of the Lega party, which joined Fidesz’s new group Patriots for Europe in the European Parliament earlier this year.
‘Although the political forces thinking in terms of a European alternative failed to replace the Brussels Grand Coalition in the 2024 EP elections, there is a real chance that they could organize themselves into a new right-wing pole in the next five years, which could bring about a real systemic change in Brussels politics.’
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.’
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.