Prime Minister Viktor Orbán opened his Friday with an interview on Kossuth Radio’s “Good Morning, Hungary!” program, where he addressed current political developments. He criticized the European Union’s war strategy in Ukraine, calling it a flawed and dangerous illusion that lacks rational and financial foundation. The head of government also highlighted growing regional skepticism towards Brussels, noting that although he often stands alone publicly, countries like Slovakia increasingly share Hungary’s concerns.
Viktor Orbán emphasized at the very beginning of the interview that there is no difference of opinion within the EU on the issue of Ukraine, as “we are past the stage of who thinks what.” He believes that there is no longer a debate of opinions among EU leaders, but rather the question is what we are going to do, and that we are having a completely different approach about action.
The Hungarian Prime Minister believes that the European war strategy, also presented at the recent EU summit in Copenhagen, is based on a mistake. This strategy claims that the Russians will run out of money sooner than the Europeans and will not have enough money to manufacture weapons, the head of government explained. According to the strategy, Europe will be able to give large amounts of money and weapons to the Ukrainians, the Russians will collapse economically, and there may even be uprisings, he continued. As a result, the Russians will have to give up their war aims, and then the Ukrainians will be able to recapture the occupied territories, that make up one-fifth of their country, he noted.
With this plan, there is a constant risk that Europeans will become increasingly involved in the war, PM Orbán warned. “The European war strategy has serious consequences for the whole of Europe,” he said. He added:
Europe has not clarified two questions: how long will this last and how much will it cost?”
After all, with a war strategy, we need to know how many years we are able to sustain this effort, he explained. It is also important to know how much it will cost in such a case, he said, adding that “we have spent 170-180 billion euros so far, while Europe is in serious economic trouble and we need every penny.” Therefore, this strategy has no rational and financial basis, he said.
This whole thing is a mirage, an illusion that will collapse, and it will have serious consequences,”
the Prime Minister predicted.
He also called it unprecedented in the history of wars that the opposing parties are not negotiating with each other. He added that the Hungarian proposal is based on the need to strive for a ceasefire and peace, and that continuous diplomatic negotiations between the parties are necessary.
PM Orbán said that when he raises these arguments, although he is alone in public, behind closed doors he is “slowly gaining the majority.”
I stand alone on the stage, although the Slovaks sometimes stand by us. Even on specific issues, there are those who strike a similar chord to us.”
However, based on private discussions, he said, “more and more countries feel that we are drifting towards war.”
He said that European countries are mostly struggling with serious problems, and although Hungary has an expanding economic policy, economic performance in Western Europe is declining. This is why the idea of withdrawing Russian funds and using them as a weapon against the Russians has been raised, he explained. According to the prime minister, these desperate European proposals show that we are facing serious problems.
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Ukraine’s EU Accession
On the subject of Ukraine’s EU accession, which was also discussed in Copenhagen, he said that each member state has the right to decide whether it wants to be in a union with another nation.
Therefore, we only have to care about our own opinion, we have to know what Hungarians want. The Hungarians – after we asked them – do not want to be in a union with the Ukrainians.”
Viktor Orbán, agreeing with this position, explained that he recommends that we conclude an agreement with the Ukrainians, as we did with the British and the Turks, but that we should not admit them to the EU.
Improving Relations with Slovakia
Referring to the fact that Viktor Orbán recently celebrated the 130th anniversary of the Maria Valeria Bridge with Slovaka’s Prime Minister Robert Fico, the Hungarian head of government said that in 16 years, there had been a huge change in the relationship between the two countries. The interviewer recalled that a little over a decade and a half ago, relations between the two countries had deteriorated to such an extent that Robert Fico banned the then Hungarian president from Slovakia.
According to the Hungarian Prime Minister,
it took Brussels to change the relationship between the two countries in a positive direction.
As he said, Brussels is now taking away the powers of the member states. They are trying to outmaneuver the member states in the economy, in EU membership, and even in education, he explained, calling their measures “centralization.”
“Brussels is coming into our lives, and every nation is protesting against this—except, of course, the largest ones, because they are behind Brussels,” he explained.
Smaller countries, such as those in the region, are all fighting to protect our sovereignty. In this, we Slovaks and Hungarians are in the same boat,”
he noted. He added that they had worked very hard with the Slovak government to reduce the intensity of the disputes and to achieve much more agreement than disagreement between the two countries.
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Featured image: Miniszterelnöki Kommunikációs Főosztály/Benko Vivien Cher
The post Brussels’ “Centralization” Strengthens Relations between Small Nations in the Fight for Sovereignty, Says Viktor Orbán appeared first on Hungary Today.
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