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Orbán re-election met with trepidation as MEPs continue rule of law talks
EPP leader: “What I want to see is a court case in Luxembourg, because judges should decide about rule of law, not politicians.”
5 April 2022, 2:32pm
Matthew Vella
Matthew Vella
2 min read
Viktor Orbán
With MEPs set to hold a debate on the withholding of EU funds to member states breaching EU values on rule of law, major parties in the European Parliament were taking stock of Viktor Orbán fourth victory at the polls this week.
MEPs on Tuesday will continue their hearings under Article 7(1) of the Treaty of the European Union regarding Poland and Hungary.
The debate will take place days after nationalist Orbán held on to his sweeping majority on Sunday, with a promise to reject EU sanctions on Russian oil and gas, arguing they would wreck an economy already slowing due to the impacts of the Ukraine war
At the same Orbán has weakened relations with allies like Poland over his cautious stance on the Ukraine war.
Orbán, 58, said Sunday’s victory came even with Brussels bureaucrats and the international mainstream media all teaming up against him. “We have scored a victory so big, that it can be seen even from the Moon, but definitely from Brussels,” he said.
The leader of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber, said he hoped the European Commission would be acting in a few days with an assessment on Hungary’s access to funds and that would eventually be decided by the EU Court of Justice.
“The Hungarians have spoken and we have to respect the outcome of this democratic vote. I am shocked at statements by a European leader placing him in opposition to the Ukrainian president as he fights for his country against an invasion by Russia,” Weber said.
He said that while COVID recovery and resilience funds were still blocked from Hungary, MEPs wanted the EC to make a proper assessment on rule of law issues. “What I want to see is a court case in Luxembourg, because judges should decide about rule of law, not politicians.”
Iratxe Garcia-Perez, the leader of the S&D, said MEPs had to demand the respect of rule of law conditionality from Hungary.
“We need to have a much more proactive position on the Commission to protect the application of rule of law... we’d like to know when Hungary will be introducing the reforms it has promised.”
In Poland, Orbán’s re-election was welcomed with mixed feelings among the ruling nationalists. “Putin is a long-term threat also for Hungary and whoever doesn’t see that is making a big mistake,” Polish deputy foreign minister Marcin Przydacz said on Monday.
This article is part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. This article reflects only the author’s view. The action was co-financed by the European Union in the frame of the European Parliament's grant programme in the field of communication. The European Parliament was not involved in its preparation and is, in no case, responsible for or bound by the information or opinions expressed in the context of this action. In accordance with applicable law, the authors, interviewed people, publishers or programme broadcasters are solely responsible. The European Parliament can also not be held liable for direct or indirect damage that may result from the implementation of the action.
Matthew Vella, a freelance journalist at MaltaToday, was formerly executive editor at Malt...
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