Minister Bóka emphasized the importance of discussing how to change the EU and find alternatives to the way it functions.
János Bóka, Hungary’s EU affairs minister, in Skopje on Thursday, warned how a new era full of uncertainties lay ahead but it was clear that “the European Union must change”.
Minister Bóka gave a lecture at Skopje University, in North Macedonia, on “how to make Europe great again”.
Outlining his talk on Facebook, he said Hungary’s EU presidency had coincided with a transition of the bloc’s institutions alongside “unparalleled challenges” such as the war in Ukraine, the EU’s declining competitiveness and the migration crisis.
Minister Bóka emphasized the importance of discussing how to change the EU and find alternatives to the way it functions.
It was not customary in the EU to present and debate alternatives, he said. “Those who try to do that get silenced.”
European institutions themselves must be open to debate, he added.
The minister questioned whether the EU would have a role to play in guaranteeing its own security and defence, and if so, what this would look like.
“Will the EU be able to move from a regulatory role to an innovative, supportive one in order to become more competitive?”
He also pondered whether the EU would finally solve the migration crisis for good or remain “captive to its past mistakes”.
