PM Orbán Proposes Strategic Deal over Ukraine’s EU Membership

Viktor Orbán was a guest on Kossuth Radio on Friday morning. In the interview given in an unusual place, in Băile Tușnad (Tusnádfürdő), on the occasion of the 34th Bálványos Free Summer University, also known as Tusványos, he reiterated the Hungarian Government’s national vision, and forcefully rejected Ukraine’s accession to the European Union. His remarks come ahead of his keynote address at Tusványos.

The Prime Minister emphasized that thinking nationally means viewing the fate of Hungarians in a broader context rather than focusing solely on the perspectives and interests of Hungarians living within state borders drawn against their will. He highlighted Tusványos, the largest political meeting with Hungarians living beyond the borders, as a reminder of this broader perspective, calling it “a great achievement,” and noting that “slowly but surely, no one disputes this anymore.”

According to PM Orbán, there is now a political consensus in Hungary that the Hungarian Government is responsible for Hungarians living beyond the border. He also emphasized that one of the historic achievements of the national government was the introduction of dual citizenship, and that economic development programs had also been launched.

Viktor Orbán described the Bálványos Free Summer University as “a liberation for Hungarian politics.” He noted that perspective is extremely important in politics, and explained that politics deals with day-to-day affairs,

but it is a valuable experience to “sometimes break free from this narrow perspective and step into a wider space, talking about what will happen tomorrow, what will happen in 2030, 2040, and 2050, and the meaning and prospects of what they are doing.”

He recalled that last year he spoke about Hungary’s grand strategy, highlighting a few points at Tusványos. On Saturday, he will go a step further and present some of the more important elements of the strategy, he revealed.

Concerns About Ukraine’s EU Membership

Orbán voiced strong opposition to Ukraine’s potential EU membership. “Farmers would be the big losers, and certain multinational companies already operating in Ukraine would be the winners if the EU budget were to be restructured in accordance with the European Commission’s plans,” he emphasized.

He noted that “according to Brussels’ plans, Ukraine would receive €360-370 billion in aid over seven years, amounting to 18 times what Hungary spends on pensions each year, while part of the aid would come from Hungarian contributions.” Providing context, he stated: “Hungary’s total economic output in one year is around €200 billion, therefore we are talking about huge sums by Hungarian standards.”

Photo: MTI/Miniszterelnöki Kommunikációs Főosztály/Fischer Zoltán

The head of government asserted that

it is in Hungary’s fundamental interest to maintain its position of rejecting Ukraine’s EU membership,” and proposed a different approach: a contract-based strategic agreement with Ukraine instead of membership.

He explained, “Ukrainian EU membership is unacceptable to Hungary because if we accept Ukraine, we will be accepting war, and we will be the battlefield.” He added that “admitting a country at war into the European Union means that we have declared war, and this will have the greatest geographical impact on the region neighboring the EU Member State at war.”

“This is unacceptable, it would destroy Hungary,” he said. “Many Hungarians would die, our young people would be taken away, we would become embroiled in a war, we would suffer terrible destruction, and our economy would be in ruins.”

He reiterated that instead of EU membership, “Hungary proposes orderly, contract-based strategic cooperation between the EU and Ukraine that can be maintained, terminated, or modified as the situation requires.”

Responding to Ukrainian Pressure

Orbán claimed that “Ukraine is making very serious threats against Hungary,” that he is addressing with caution. “There is no place for hotheadedness here, as this is not a stage,” he said.

When necessary, I let it go, when necessary, I take it seriously, when necessary, I order countermeasures from the secret services and law enforcement agencies, thus we give the appropriate response even if we do not make a big deal out of it,”

he continued.

He added that “Ukrainians are becoming increasingly involved in Hungarian politics, the media, and the world of experts, hence we must defend ourselves.”

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Via MTI, Featured image: MTI/Miniszterelnöki Kommunikációs Főosztály/Fischer Zoltán