Hungarian PM lashes out at Brussels for holding back billions of euros.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said Thursday the European Commission is blackmailing Hungary by withholding billions in frozen funds over rule-of-law concerns.

Orbán said the blackmail is “a fact,” even admitted by the blackmailers themselves — members of the European Parliament.

“In our view, Hungary fulfils all the qualities of the rule of law, and when the European Commission has specific needs, we implement everything from them, and we are also cooperative,” Orbán told reporters in Budapest during a press conference. “You cannot blame me for doing everything I can to promote Hungary’s interests in such a blackmailed situation.”

  • EvergreenGuru@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    2
    arrow-down
    37
    ·
    1 year ago

    Hungary is the only independent country in Europe, which makes the US worried, because it sees the EU/NATO as vassal countries. And EU policymakers have admitted as much to think tanks in Europe.

    Meanwhile Hungary is walking the tightrope between the EU and Russia. Hungary boldly chooses to get its Russian oil from Russia, whereas the rest of the EU chooses to get its Russian oil from India. this is beyond the comprehension of the EU states, which loudly proclaim to their American masters “Russia Bad!”

    • maynarkh@feddit.nl
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      13
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      Hungary is the only independent country in Europe

      This is the most laughable shit ever. Hungary is currently the one country in the EU where the government was cowed into not celebrating one of the biggest national remembrance days because it would have offended the Russians. There is a large Soviet monument in downtown Budapest that no one dares to touch.

      Russian intelligence services have full access to Hungarian classified data. Russian agents operate with impunity and above the Hungarian law in Hungary. Hungary is trying but unable to get out of Chinese and Russian contracts since they are impossible to fulfil in the current political climate.

    • magnetosphere@kbin.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      8
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      Sure, America is arrogant, but Hungary isn’t “boldly choosing” to buy oil from Russia. They just don’t want to be the next target if Russia is successful in Ukraine.

      That’s a reasonable concern, but making the Hungarian government sound heroic because of it is a little much.

      • EvergreenGuru@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        arrow-down
        19
        ·
        1 year ago

        Hungary isn’t worried about Russia invading them. They know Russia won’t, because if Russia wanted war with NATO, they’d have already invaded. Russia already stated that its goal was to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO and obtaining nuclear weapons.

        Hungary is more concerned with keeping its costs down and avoiding going along with NATO aggression against Russia (provoking a war Russia doesn’t want). They know better than anyone that giving into all your allies’ demands will spell disaster.