Ursula von der Leyen and Viktor Orban (Image: Getty)
European Union leaders have launched an angry tirade against Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban over what they see as his misuse of the bloc’s rotating presidency in relation to his so-called “peace mission” aimed at brokering an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
And newly re-elected European Parliament President Roberta Metsola has said she is expecting members of the assembly to stay “strong” when it comes to support for Kyiv.
Officials are angry that Mr Orban, a nationalist populist who is seen as having the warmest ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin among EU leaders, made unannounced trips to Moscow and Beijing earlier this month
A group of 63 lawmakers in the EU legislature wrote a letter to the bloc’s top officials on Monday urging them to strip Hungary of its voting rights over Mr Orban’s recent trips.
The letter, addressed to von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, and head of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola, says Orban has “already caused significant damage by exploiting and abusing” the rotating presidency by giving the impression he’d been acting on behalf of the EU.
Re-elected European Parliament President Roberta Metsola (Image: Getty)
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Mr Orban “intentionally misrepresented his empowerments” during his meetings with Putin and Xi, lawmakers wrote, adding: “This kind of behaviour amounts to usurping the powers and prerogatives of the EU” and “actively undermining common EU positions” on Ukraine.
Speaking yesterday, Ms Metsola said there was “huge support for this to be done in the first plenary session of this new parliament” and that Ukrainians had been questioning where Europe had been in the weeks since the elections to the European Parliament.
She added: “Support for Ukraine will be, I’m sure, the trend of this parliament. Majorities will still be strong on that and this parliament will actually work with the other institutions where I’m sure the same direction will be made.”
The Hungarian leader’s recent conduct, the letter continues, “requires real actions, such as suspending Hungary’s voting rights in the Council, since practice has shown that mere verbal condemnations of this situation have no effect.”
Viktor Orban with Vladimir Putin in Moscow (Image: Getty)
Mr Orban has insisted he was seeking the quickest path to peace in Ukraine and portrayed himself as uniquely positioned to communicate with both warring parties. He also met last week with former US President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago compound and expressed confidence that Trump would quickly “solve” the conflict.
His EU partners were unhappy his move created the impression that he was acting on behalf of the 27-member bloc during his meetings with Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping and worried that he was undermining EU unity on support for Ukraine. Hungary holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council from July to December 2024.
In response, some nations including Sweden and Finland, as well as the EU Commission, said their top officials would boycott meetings in Budapest and send civil servants instead.
However, not all EU members acted in kind. The energy ministers of Austria, Belgium and Bulgaria attended an informal meeting on energy on Tuesday in Hungary’s capital, with one downplaying the boycott.
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Vladimir Malinov, Bulgaria’s caretaker energy minister, speaking as he entered the meeting, said: “I think that we have a good representation.
“Having in mind that this is an informal meeting, it’s not an issue. Maybe on the formal level we will have much more high representation.”
The commission’s plan to boycott the meetings prompted mixed reactions from Hungarian officials, with some employing the kind of bellicose tone that has long characterised Mr Orban’s government when it comes to the EU.
Kinga Gal, an MEP representing Mr Orban’s Fidesz party, said the commission’s decision is “clearly a part of von der Leyen’s election campaign,” a reference to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who hopes to be elected to another five-year term tomorrow.
Posting on X, Ms Gal said: “We have become used to von der Leyen using the EU institutions, especially against Hungary for political blackmail and pressure.
“This is unacceptable and goes against the very essence of European cooperation.”
Hungary’s Finance Minister Mihaly Varga was more subdued, saying in Brussels yesterday that Hungary’s EU presidency “remains committed to sincere cooperation with all member states and institutions.”
Mr Varga said ministers “are free to decide to take part in our events or not. But I am absolutely sure that there will be a high-level participation in the events.”
