The European Union announced its top officials will boycott informal meetings hosted by Hungary during the country’s EU presidency. This decision follows Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's controversial meetings with foreign leaders about Ukraine, which have angered European partners. Some member states, however, are frowning on Brussels’ unprecedented move. The European Commission, the EU's executive […]
The Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has officially taken over the presidency of the European Council from the Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. The handover took place in Brussels on Monday, where Orbán and De Croo held talks to mark the transition. This marks the beginning of Hungary's six-month tenure in the role. During […]
An informal European Union summit convened in Granada, Spain, took an unexpected turn when the Prime Ministers of Hungary and Poland blocked a joint EU declaration on migration. The two leaders compelled delegates to omit a passage regarding member countries' views on migration from the carefully crafted declaration that had been in the works for […]
Democracy remains the most important value EU citizens want Parliament to stand up for. 72% of respondents (78% in Hungary) believe their country has benefited from being an EU member, according to a new Eurobarometer survey. Democracy, human rights and free speech are paramount to EU citizens as they call on the European Parliament to […]
Members of the Culture and Education Committee of the European Parliament have concluded their visit in Budapest, having gathered insights into recent developments in the country’s cultural, education and media policies. In the concluding press conference in Budapest on Friday, the head of the delegation Sabine Verheyen (a German delegate of the European People’s Party) […]
European Union Member States, including Hungary, have voted in favor of the next package of sanctions against Russia this week. The package includes a ban on imports of more Russian products, an extension of the list of persons subject to travel bans and asset freezes, and a price cap on oil shipments from Russia to […]
The European Commission, the quasi-government of the European Union, calls for an estimated EUR 7.5 billion in EU funding to be withheld from Hungary over corruption concerns that the Hungarian government failed to dispel. Referring to EC President Ursula von der Leyen's State of the Union address earlier this week, EC Commissioner Johannes Hahn, in […]
The European Commission has sent a formal notification to the Hungarian government to launch the so-called conditionality mechanism, which links the disbursement of EU funds to the rule of law, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced in Strasbourg on Tuesday at the European Parliament (EP) plenary session. As the Hungarian state news agency […]
The European Court of Justice delivered a historic ruling this week that ties EU fund payments to the rule of law. The decision allows Brussels to withhold funds from Hungary and Poland, two countries that Brussels has accused of failing to uphold democratic standards. Hungary has long been at loggerheads with the European Union over […]
With measures for the protection of the Union budget in mind, the Court of Justice, sitting as a full Court, dismissed the actions brought by the Hungarian and Polish governments against the conditionality mechanism which makes the receipt of financing from the Union budget subject to the respect by the Member States for the principles […]
The Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), the oldest political foundation in Germany, has been represented in Budapest since 1990. Its goal in Hungary is to promote political dialogue between Hungary and Germany as well as member states, the exchange of analysis, views and concepts. As the leadership of the Foundation tells Diplomacy&Trade, when the Friedrich Ebert […]
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS), a German foundation that has over 110 offices worldwide, has been in Hungary for more than three decades. The Foundation was established some 60 years ago to promote democratic development in Germany. It stands close to the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and is governed by Christian values. Its guiding principles […]
In a letter, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán informed German Chancellor Angela Merkel, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel, President of the European Council that the Hungarian government was vetoing legislation on the EU's seven-year budget and the recovery fund. The Hungarian government's website quotes the head of the PM's […]
After three years of falling, weapons and military hardware exports by Germany have gone into reverse in 2019, reaching almost EUR 8 billion, and the quarter of these exports deliveries went to Hungary, Deutsche Welle and euronews report. Documents show that Hungary purchased roughly a quarter of all the authorized German arms exports in the […]
Addressing the forum 'It's about Europe, it's about you' i Budapest , European Commissioner for Trade, Cecilia Malström said the free trade agreements enable Europe to shape economic globalisation rather than passively suffering from it.
