Page 36 - bne IntelliNews monthly magazine December 2024

36 I Central Europe bne December 2024
The Tisza Party leader claimed that
the planned disinformation campaign would target other popular public figures, known for their dissent from the ruling party. Fidesz will likely disseminate information or fabricated materials about the sexual misconduct of these persons, specifically focusing on their known homosexuality.
Magyar recalled that several former intel- ligence officials had informed him of state involvement in the harassment of his colleagues and associates. He added that
insights from these sources convinced him that his office, car, and home have been under surveillance, although he could not provide evidence of that.
At the end of his press conference, Magyar appealed to Finance Minister Mihaly Varga to give an account of the real state of the economy. According
to his knowledge, Istvan Tiborcz, the prime minister's son-in-law, is giving direct instructions to National Economy Minister Marton Nagy on certain policy measures. Recently, the government
acquired an office building built by the companies of Tiborcz for at least 30-40% above the market price, he claimed.
At the end of the press conference, Magyar also made a plea to Interior Minister Sandor Pinter, calling on
him to "stand up for the country" and intervene in what he called a disturbing misuse of state power against his party. Pinter used to oversee the operations of Hungary’s intelligence services until the 2022 elections, after which these were handed over to Rogan.
Xi Jinping announces strategic
partnership between China and Slovakia
bne IntelliNews
Slovakia and China have upgraded their bilateral relationship to a new level of “strategic partnership”, China’s President Xi Jinping announced during a visit by populist Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico on November 1.
The agreement represents another success in Beijing's strategy of building support among CEE member states of the European Union, thereby preventing any potential united EU policy against China, following the announcement of a similar deal with Hungary in May.
“The visit to China has a strategic nature and expresses mutual respect between both countries,” Fico highlighted on his Facebook page, where he also released photographs from his visit.
Fico is accompanied by eight cabinet ministers and 56 companies and trade associations, according to the Central European Institute of Asian Studies (CEIAS), but few details have been released since Fico’s departure from Bratislava on October 31. The Czech Press Agency reported that no journal- ists were accompanying the delegation.
“Fico’s visit is happening rather secretly,” the head of Bratislava-based
www.bne.eu
CEIAS Matej Šimalčík commented on his LinkedIn profile, adding that neither the official agenda, list of delegation members, nor the list of accompanying people were officially announced.
Despite proclaiming himself a socialist, Fico is an open supporter of the radical rightwing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and often copies his play- book, in this case by strengthening ties with the Chinese communist regime
in order to win future investment and trade deals.
that the country has other options.
The head of CEIAS’s Prague Office Filip Šebok wrote on his X account that Fico “expressed support for China’s three global initiatives (global development, civilization and security)” and opposed “unilateralism and hegemonism”.
Šebok also noted that “there was discus- sion on Ukraine, with the two sides praising each other’s stance” and that Fico said “Slovakia is willing to join the Friends of Peace group on Ukraine and
“The visit to China has a strategic nature and expresses mutual respect between both countries”
Hungary is the biggest recipient of Chinese foreign direct investment
in recent years and has on occasions blocked a united EU foreign policy stance towards Beijing, proclaiming
it is taking a pragmatic stance for the country's benefit, and does not want
to interfere in China's internal affairs. Building relations with Beijing and keeping channels open with Vladimir Putin's Russia are also seen as a way of rebalancing Hungary's foreign policy and showing an often criticial Brussels
contribute to the political resolution of the conflict together with China”.
After forming his left-right cabinet, Fico has reoriented Slovak foreign policy from a staunch backer of Ukraine to
a Kremlin-pleasing stance, calling for peace negotiations with the Kremlin.
Before departing for China, Fico appeared on the Russian state propaganda channel Rossiya 1 in an unprecedented interview, calling for security guarantees for Russia.