Page 33 - bne IntelliNews monthly magazine November 2024

bne November 2024 Central Europe I 33
migration and border protection, and admitting Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen area this year.
Since the last Hungarian rotating presidency in 2011, the migration crisis "has reached a scale not seen since 2015" and threatened to tear
the Schengen area apart, he warned. Hungary aims to be "the voice and catalyst of change" and it believes that competitiveness is the key element
of change.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who left before the session ended, responded to the opening address by highlighting concerns about Hungary's commitment to the EU's values and policies.
The EC president took a firm stance against Orban’s opposition to supporting Ukraine in the war against Russia, saying, without naming Hungary’s leader, that there are still people who blame Ukraine for the war and not Russian leader Vladimir Putin. She then drew comparisons
to Hungary's 1956 revolution and the
Czech resistance to the 1968 Russian invasion.
"No European language equates peace with surrender and sovereignty with occupation," she noted. Von der Leyen accused Orban of engaging in "rogue diplomacy" with his unsanctioned visits to Kyiv, Moscow, and Beijing, calling his peace efforts a "propaganda show for autocrats".
She expressed concern that Hungary
is moving away from the EU's unified stance, especially regarding its reliance on Russian fossil fuels.
Referring to Orban’s calls to bolster the EU’s competitiveness, she addressed the Hungarian people directly, stating, "We are one family, and your future is our shared future."
EPP president Manfred Weber also criticised Orban's recent diplomatic trips at the start of Hungary’s presidency and noted that his address failed to mention Ukraine even once. Weber expressed disbelief at how the Hungarian premier, once seen as a freedom fighter, could
side with the aggressor in the conflict. He also highlighted Orban’s increasing isolation within the EU, saying that
in 2011, Hungary was at the centre of Europe, but today no one wants to meet with the prime minister.
He took a highly politicised position telling the prime minister that EPP member the Hungarian Tisza Party, led by Peter Magyar, will defeat him. He is the future, he added.
Orban remained defiant in his responses. He said the EU must be protected from the European left wing, "as they think democracy only exists as long as they win and ends as soon as the right wins".
He accused the EU of using its institutions as "political weapons" to target Hungary and claimed that the newly formed group of Hungarian-led MEPs, the Patriots for Europe, was being unfairly excluded from key roles in the European Parliament. He framed these exclusions as part of an orchestrated campaign by Brussels to silence nationalist and conservative voices.
Viktor Orban’s propaganda machine sinks to new low and gets absurdly personal with focus on Peter Magyar’s groin
bne IntelliNews
The close-up picture of Peter Magyar's crotch has become a mainstream story in pro- government media, just a day after the EP debate on October 9.
Viktor Orban’s vast and powerful propaganda machine is in full damage control following the humiliating
EP debate. Hungary’s strongman has grown accustomed to criticism from Western leaders and the MEPs in
the EP, but on October 9 he faced an unprecedented barrage of criticism,
after unveiling Hungary’s six-month presidency programme.
Fidesz spin doctors have attempted to divert public attention from the debate, where the government’s and Orban’s isolation became crystal clear. Instead, they have resorted to personal attacks on Magyar once again.
On Friday, October 11, Magyar’s former girlfriend, Evelin Vogel, posted an interview on social media, accusing him of aggressive behaviour during and after their
relationship, claiming he continues to harass her even after their breakup. Vogel and Magyar became a pair in the spring, in the early days of Magyar’s political career.
The former Fidesz cadre said his former girlfriend has blackmailed him and
his party, and now she has turned
to Fidesz to smear him for money, allegedly HUF5mn (€12,500) per month, according to the opposition leader.
In her Facebook post, keen-eyed viewers noticed from the reflection in Vogel’s iris
www.bne.eu