Recent comments by EU officials indicate that the protection and management of external borders may need to be reinforced.Continue reading
The three-day strategic government meeting led by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán began on Monday morning at the monastery in Sopronbánfalva in western Hungary, with the first topic being the early morning earthquake in Turkey, Bertalan Havasi, the Prime Minister’s press chief, told MTI.
At the beginning of the meeting, the government reviewed what assistance Hungary can provide to earthquake-stricken Turkey. Since then, several rescue teams have already been dispatched to the earthquake-affected regions, and Viktor Orbán has sent a letter to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressing his condolences to the victims of the earthquakes.
In addition to the sudden catastrophe, the cabinet meeting will also address economic and political issues over the three days. Viktor Orbán wrote on his social media page that the EU’s sanctions policy, its impact on the economy and energy strategy, and inflation would be among the main topics. The meeting will also discuss the rural development strategy and the perspectives of Hungarian science, as well as the war in Ukraine and its international context.
Although the three-day meeting will not be open to the press, the results will be presented by Gergely Gulyás, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office at the Government Info meeting on Thursday.
The cabinet meeting will last until Wednesday, after which Viktor Orbán will travel to Brussels to attend the EU summit on Thursday and Friday. In preparation for the summit, the Hungarian Prime Minister took part in a joint video conference with the Polish, Belgian, Finnish and Maltese prime ministers, the Bulgarian President and Charles Michel, President of the European Council. The topic was the war in Ukraine, the economic difficulties in Europe and illegal migration.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán participating in the joint video conference with President of the European Council Charles Michel (L) and Bulgarian President Rumen Radev (R) on the screen. Image: MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán.
On the Ukraine issue, Orbán again called for an immediate ceasefire and peace talks, and for a substantive political debate on the harmful sanctions imposed by Brussels. He stressed that in this situation, access to European cohesion and reconstruction funds must be made much faster and easier for EU member states. On the subject of migration, Viktor Orbán his call on Brussels to help finance border protection, as fences protect the whole of Europe.
Featured photo via MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán