The raucous celebrations by Viktor Orbán and his Fidesz party on Sunday night in Budapest were matched only by the deafening silence from Brussels. EU leaders normally queue up to congratulate each other on an election success.
“We have never perhaps looked as good as we do tonight,” Orbán told supporters in Budapest, declaring that his party had achieved “such a victory that it can be seen from the moon — but from Brussels for sure.”
It’s probably fair to guess that the Hungarian prime minister’s supporters in the EU institutions would fit into the average phone booth. It is also fair to say that Mr Orbán does not care and that four straight election wins are evidence that his tactics have been successful.
But the mutual antipathy between Orbán and Brussels that has existed for most of the last decade has, until now, never meant that he has been entirely isolated.
Poland, which has also had its own long-running battle over the rule of law with the European Commission and, like Hungary, has yet to receive its funding from the EU recovery and resilience fund, has been a reliable ally.
So, too, have the two other members of the Visegrad Four, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Because of their votes, Hungary has escaped immediate EU sanctions for breaching the treaty provisions on the rule of law.
Yet there are signs that the EU’s ‘awkward squad’ could soon become the ‘awkward one’.
While Orbán has not been damaged at home by his close relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, his equivocal stance following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and his victory remarks on Sunday night indicate he is being increasingly isolated,
If Orbán’s attacks on “the left-wing at home,” “the international left-wing”, “Brussels bureaucrats”, and Hungarian-American financier George Soros were all tried and tested, his description of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as one of the opponents his party had faced in the election was downright bizarre.
The other three members of the Visegrad Four have all taken a harder line on Russia than Orbán, who continues to refuse to allow arms supplies to travel across Hungarian soil.
While Poland has not received a cent of the €30 billion it hopes to get from the EU’s recovery fund because of its own rule of law battles with the Commission, reports suggest that it is only a matter of time before an agreement is reached.
It is surely no coincidence that this follows Poland’s leading role in the humanitarian and political response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
It is equally telling that the Commission’s announcement that it will trigger the conditionality mechanism linking EU funds to the rule of law applies only to Hungary. Incidentally or not, the announcement was made less than 48 hours after Orbán declared victory.
Recent history tells us that small countries can game Brussels but that you always need an ally. Viktor Orbán, for all his awkwardness, has never been the odd man out until now.
The Roundup
The European Commission unveiled plans on Tuesday to cut its own greenhouse gas emissions by 60% before the end of the decade, saying the remainder will be compensated with carbon removals.
With just four days to go before the first round of the French presidential election, many left-wing voters still wonder whether they should bend some of their beliefs and support far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the only viable candidate on the left likely to be able to hold back the far-right.
Solar energy development in France is unlikely to increase much over the next five years, as most presidential candidates have not prioritised it despite its positive perceptions from the electorate.
Lawmakers in the European Parliament have been working on a new proposal for a ban on the targeting of minors and the processing of sensitive data, seen by EURACTIV.
The EU Court of Justice has once again examined the issue of connection data, reminding Ireland and France of the stringent framework that must surround collection and use.
Increasing food production in Europe is a priority in light of the Ukraine war, according to the EU’s agri-boss, who detailed how the European Commission encourages member states can do this through the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
Two top EU health bodies announced on Wednesday that an outbreak caused by Salmonella is rapidly evolving in six European Union countries, Norway, and the United Kingdom (UK), with Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs identified as the likely route of infection.
The German government presented on Wednesday a comprehensive revamp of the country’s electricity sector, outlining new frameworks for renewables, power grids and markets in order to set the country on track to reach climate neutrality.
Last but not least, make sure you get your weekly dose of relevant policy news in our Green and Health Briefs.
Look out for…
- Agriculture and fisheries council.
- French EU Council: Meeting of European Environmental Assessment Experts.
- European Parliament plenary continues.
- European Investment Bank: Meeting of Board of Directors.
Views are the author’s.
[Edited by Alice Taylor/Zoran Radosavljevic]
Source: euractiv.com
