Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in an interview that parliament will vote on the issue at the autumn plenary session.Continue reading
Sweden will now show a video in schools depicting Hungary as an authoritarian state and violator of human rights as a teaching aid. The video containing offensive and misleading allegations against Hungary is co-narrated by a well known anti-government political activist.
Looking from the point of view of bilateral relationships from Budapest, one would have thought that in the past few years the government in Stockholm has done everything in their power to damage and undermine its relationship with its Hungarian counterpart, and to cement Budapest’s veto over their NATO membership. The assumption, however, was incorrect, as now Hungarian democracy will be taught in Swedish schools as a cautionary tale of what happens when national conservative forces are in government, and depicts the liberal opposition as the only valid alternative.
The video was commissioned by UR, a Swedish educational portal, and is approved to be shown in schools. Among others, it is based on the opinions of Hungarian radical left-wing activist, Márton Gulyás, known for his vicious attacks against conservative politicians and for volunteering extremely critical opinions in Western media outlets. The creators of the video did not make any attempts for a balanced depiction of the disputes currently present in Hungarian society by allowing voices from the civic-conservative, pro-government side.
Balázs Orbán, the Hungarian Prime Minister’s Chief Political Advisor reacted to the Hungarophobic video by saying:
Shocking Swedish government-approved educational video attacking Hungary! How do we convince Hungarian MPs to support Sweden’s membership when our democracy is repeatedly questioned, insulting our voters and the country as a whole?
Actions like this will certainly make negotiations more difficult.
‼️Shocking teaching video approved by the #Swedish government attacking #Hungary!
How should we convince Hungarian MPs to back Sweden’s #NATO membership when our democracy is repeatedly questioned, insulting both our voters and the entire country?
Actions like this will… pic.twitter.com/atSYIkqNsi
— Balázs Orbán (@BalazsOrban_HU) September 13, 2023
Gergely Gulyás, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office called the educational film an accusation without any basis and an unjustified insult. He emphasized that
if the film is played in state schools, it means that Sweden is doing everything to prevent Hungary from ratifying its accession to NATO.
He added that he would suggest to the Fidesz government party leader that their MPs should debate again whether they want this country to join NATO.
Swedish journalist Erik Almqvist reacted by saying, “This is extremely embarrassing for me as a Swede.
But unfortunately this is how the Swedish state media operates: false accusations and blunt lies against any country where people do not vote liberal.
And unfortunately the state is totally dominant in Swedish TV. The Swedish state controls the three largest TV channels (!). Compare to Hungary where all the three largest TV channels are independent from the state.
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