Hungarian Conservative

On the first day of the Rule of Law as Lawfare Conference experts such as Minister of European Union Affairs János Bóka of Hungary and MEP Ryszard Legutko of Poland discussed how the legal concept of the rule of law has been turned into a political weapon by EU bodies, and analysed the double standards applied to different Member States with rule of law assessment procedures.

As of this May, the National Graphical Programming Competition, established by the John von Neumann Computer Society, will bear the name of Mihály Kovács (1916⁠–⁠2006), Hungary’s first secondary school computer science teacher and a Piarist monk.

According to Fanni Lajkó, an analyst at the Center for Fundamental Rights, Europe faces two paths in the upcoming June elections: succumbing to pro-war views or rising up to restore the European Union’s original mission as a peace project. The institute held a press conference on Friday, where the Director of EU Research, Attila Kovács, and Fanni Lajkó shared their insights on the latest lead candidate debate.

According to a survey commissioned by liberal think tank Republikon, Szentkirályi has managed to rally the Fidesz base in the capital, while Karácsony has succeeded in garnering support from the opposition. Szentkirályi has overtaken former Centre for Budapest Transport, independent candidate Dávid Vitézy in the poll.

Social media plays a significant role in young people’s lives: according to research conducted by the Hungarian Media Authority, children use popular social media sites daily. The aim of the publication is to discuss the risks, impacts, and opportunities of social media usage in a context that is easily understandable for young people, allowing them to form their own opinions on the topic.

The first scientific results from the Euclid mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) have arrived, including five new images of the universe with unprecedented detail, which showcase the telescope’s capability to uncover the cosmos’ secrets; enabling scientists to search for drifting planets and use minor distortions in galaxy images to study dark matter and investigate the evolution of the universe. The Hungarian HUN-REN Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences joined the consortium this year.

Ilaria Salis, an Italian anti-fascist activist, was moved from a Budapest prison to house arrest on Thursday morning after spending over 15 months in custody. The court had ordered the payment of a €40,000 bail.

The value of the three-part investment is HUF 26 billion, with the government providing approximately HUF 900 million in support, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó announced on 23 May. The minister highlighted at the inauguration ceremony of Siemens Energy Ltd’s new plant that the German conglomerate will manufacture gas turbine burners in its new multifunctional facility and establish a dual training centre there, equipping Hungarian professionals with the knowledge needed for using the latest technologies.

To celebrate the director’s life’s work, the Art+ Cinema theatre in Budapest will screen his iconic films throughout an entire week.

For the first time in its history, Hungary will host the most prestigious club football match, which has previously taken place in 32 stadiums across 28 cities in 15 countries. The Puskás Aréna, inaugurated in 2019, will host its third European cup final following the 2020 Super Cup match and last year’s Europa League final.

Hungarian Minister for National Economy Márton Nagy met with Philipp Haussmann, Deputy Chairman of the German Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations, and Barbara Zollmann, Executive Board Member of the German⁠–⁠Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce on Tuesday at his office. The minister emphasized that Germany is Hungary’s most important economic partner: German companies employ more than 220,000 people in Hungary, and Germany accounts for 24 per cent of Hungary’s foreign trade, making it the country’s number one trading partner.

The 29th Svet Knihy, or Book World Prague International Book Fair and Literary Festival, will feature around 800 exhibitors from 40 countries. On Friday, 24 May the Hungarian organizers will host a V4 literary discussion about the impact of Franz Kafka’s works on Hungarian, Slovak, Czech, and Polish literature and culture.

In his remarks to officials working in the US capital and foreign diplomats, Ambassador Takács pointed out that for the sake of Ukraine and its society, peace and a ceasefire are needed. The sooner negotiations aimed at this can begin, the fewer further casualties will have to be suffered. The Ambassador also emphasized the importance of NATO remaining a defensive alliance focusing on deterrence.

Gergely Karácsony confidently leads the race for the mayor of Budapest, according to a survey by the Publicus Institute: 46 per cent of all respondents would vote for him in the municipal elections on 9 June.

Fico was shot in the town of Handlová after an off-site government meeting on 5 May. The pre-trial detention of the suspected perpetrator has been ordered by a Slovak court.

Eight adults were on the motorboat, five of whom—three men and two women—are still being searched for intensively, two were found dead. The ongoing investigation involves IT and water rescue experts. The aim is to determine if anyone is criminally responsible for the accident.

This year, the event will feature over fifty programmes across four stages. In the afternoons discussions introducing prominent authors and their new works will be held, while evenings will offer musical literary productions envisioned for Margó. The festival will include performances by Tudósok, Miklós Vecsei and Gergely Balla with their Mondjad Atikám József Attila evening, while slam poets Pion x Krizsó will play from their Népi lira album.

While talking at the Sedona Forum, US Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman called Hungary’s pro-peace approach to the Russo-Ukrainian war ‘a proposal for capitulation’. In response to him, the political director for the Prime Minister of Hungary Balázs Orbán asked: ‘Has the US strategy really been that effective over the past two years?’

In an interview with public media Minister of Energy Csaba Lantos informed that the recently concluded China-Hungary bilateral agreements cover, among others, nuclear research and development, training cooperation, expanding the electric vehicle charging network, and examining the possibility of creating a critically important connection between the Hungarian and Serbian oil pipeline systems.

As part of the SopronFest series, János Áder, Chairman of the Blue Planet Climate Protection Foundation, addressed various topics during the recorded conversation, including the difference in attitudes towards environmental issues between Generation Y, which grew up with digitalization, and Generation Z, which was born into it.

László Kövér stated that the 20th century has shown Hungarians that a liveable future cannot be achieved in the battlefields. The future is in the homes being built and in nurseries, kindergartens, and schools, not in destroyed, burnt-out towns, the House Speaker stressed.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary needs economic relations, not ideological ones, with both East and West in terms of future high technologies.

The district mayor of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode in Brussels, Emir Kir, issued an administrative order to prohibit the National Conservatism Conference (NatCon) scheduled for 16⁠–⁠17 April, citing ‘ensuring public safety’ as the reason. MCC, a co-organizer of the event, has now launched legal proceedings against Kir, claiming that the order violated the right of free speech.

According to the findings of the Project Europe research by Századvég, public attitudes towards combat readiness in Europe significantly differ regarding armed conflict within or beyond national borders. According to the survey, 59 per cent of EU respondents would fight for their country within their own borders, while 27 per cent would not be willing to do so.

Speaking to the Hungarian media after the meeting, János Bóka evaluated that the past five-year institutional cycle has been fundamentally marked by failures in the European Union, which faced numerous historical challenges to which it failed to provide adequate responses.

Head Coach Marco Rossi has named his 26-player squad for Euro 2024, where his team Hungary will be facing hosts Germany, Switzerland, and Scotland in the group stage.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni believes that the only viable path which takes everyone’s interests into account is to have a debate on how to stop illegal immigration into Europe. ‘The only serious approach involves cooperation with the origin and transit countries,’ she emphasized at a press event in Milan on Tuesday.

According to EBRD’s forecast, Hungary’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is projected to expand by 2.2 per cent this year and by 3.5 per cent next year.

The European Commission has introduced an unprecedented proposal for sanctions: punitive measures targeting Russian liquefied natural gas. Hungary opposes the new sanctions package for fear that it may risk destabilizing the European energy market and drive up prices.

CEO of MTVA Dániel Papp expressed that during the most challenging times, it was sport that Hungarian society could cling to, as it provided a sense of freedom.