The Russian-Ukrainian situation "makes it abundantly clear" that as long as Europe and Hungary depend on Russia for energy supplies, these "cannot be secure," LMP co-leader Kanász-Nagy said.Continue reading
Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) approved a resolution condemning Russia’s military operation in Ukraine and calling for tough sanctions against Moscow, including restriction of oil and gas imports from Russia and disconnecting the country from SWIFT. The motion also contains several demands that could have a negative impact on the economic and political interest of the Orbán government. The resolution, for example, calls for the Russian-controlled and Budapest-based International Investment Bank (IIB) to be immediately banned from operating in the EU. It also urges Member States to end cooperation with the Russian nuclear giant Rosatom, which is also involved in Hungary’s nuclear power plant project.
“The European Parliament condemns in the strongest possible terms the Russian Federation’s illegal, unprovoked, and unjustified military aggression against and invasion of Ukraine, as well as the involvement of Belarus in this aggression,” according to the resolution adopted on Tuesday.
The members of the European Parliament called on the EU to impose new tough sanctions against Russia, which in particular should be “aimed at strategically weakening the Russian economy and industrial base, in particular the military-industrial complex, and thereby the ability of the Russian Federation to threaten international security in the future.” EU institutions and EU members were also asked to grant Ukraine the status of a candidate for membership in the EU.
The text was approved by 637 votes in favor, 13 against, and 26 abstentions.
The motion also contains several demands that could have a negative impact on the economic and political interests of the Orbán government.
Socialist Party MEP Ujhelyi: Fidesz supported the shutdown of Paks2 and action against the Russian “spy bank”
This was highlighted by Socialist Party MEP István Ujhelyi, on Tuesday.
The resolution states that the EP:
Ujhelyi said at a press conference that Fidesz’s MEPs had voted in favor of imposing sanctions on the International Investment Bank (IIB), Russian residency bond holders, and ending cooperation with Russia’s Rosatom, the general contractor for the upgrade of Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant.
“Fidesz is in total chaos,” Ujhelyi said. “After 12 years, all of [PM] Orbán’s foreign and domestic policy endeavors have collapsed. It turns out that cozying up to Putin leads to complete failure and is even a threat to Hungary’s national security.”
Ujhelyi said the EP would adopt a resolution on the war in Ukraine, adding that Fidesz’s MEPs had voted for the EU to expel the IIB, which he called “the spy bank that Orbán brought to Hungary.”
Fidesz’s MEPs, he added, had also voted in favor of expelling those who were granted residency in the EU by purchasing residency bonds, “such as people in Putin’s inner circle.”
The ruling parties also supported ending all forms of cooperation with Russia’s Rosatom, “the partner of Orbán and his oligarchs in the Paks upgrade project,” Ujhelyi said.
In reaction, Fidesz MEP Tamás Deutsch said Ujhelyi had lied about Fidesz having voted in favor of scrapping the upgrade of Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant when the party’s MEPs had actually opposed it.
“Ujhelyi lied this morning by saying that Fidesz will not vote for the EP resolution on the war in Ukraine. We voted in favor of it. In the evening, Ujhelyi lied that ‘Fidesz supported the shutdown of Paks2. We voted against it. We did not support the parts of the resolution that could jeopardize Hungarian security of supply. The only question now is what Ujhelyi will lie about tonight!”, wrote Tamás Deutsch in his Facebook post.
Telex highlighted that the contradiction between the two politicians’ comments is probably due to the fact that in the document supported by Fidesz, “ending cooperation with Rosatom” does not mean quite the same as “shutting down” the Paks II project. (Although its consequences could end up being the same). And when Tamás Deutsch said that Fidesz had opposed all parts of the resolution that would threaten Hungary’s energy supply, he probably meant that when the inclusion of Rosatom was proposed as an amendment, Fidesz voted against it. However, after this amendment passed, the final resolution was backed by Fidesz as well.
It is important to note, however, that the now approved resolution is recommendatory in nature, meaning it is not legally binding: neither the EU institutions nor the member states will be obliged to implement the proposals it contains. At the same time, of course, in a political sense the decisions of the directly elected representatives of the EP do have significance.
Meanwhile, a serious debate has unfolded in recent days about whether the national security risk of Hungary’s Russia-financed nuclear power plant expansion changed due to the war in Ukraine, but Prime Minister Viktor Orbán defended the project just a few days ago.
Featured photo via the European Parliament’s official Twitter page
