The prime minister pointed out that Hungary has already supported Austria, Serbia and North Macedonia, but they consider further measures necessary.Continue reading
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán held an online discussion with his European partners ahead of the EU summit to discuss migration, economic difficulties, and the war in Ukraine.
In preparation for the EU summit beginning on Thursday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán attended a joint video conference with the Polish, Belgian, Finnish, and Maltese prime ministers, the Bulgarian head of state, and President of the European Council Charles Michel, his press chief told Hungarian news agency MTI on Tuesday.
The topics of the video conference included the war in Ukraine, the current economic difficulties in Europe, and illegal migration.
Photo: Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán
In connection with the agenda item concerning Ukraine, Orbán repeatedly urged an immediate ceasefire and peace talks as well as a meaningful debate regarding the EU sanctions, as they are destroying Europe’s economy. According to Orbán, in this situation, access to the European cohesion and recovery funds must be made much swifter and simpler for member states.
As for migration,
Orbán repeatedly called upon Brussels to take part in the funding of border protection, as the fences are protecting the whole of Europe.
The European Council is holding a special summit on Thursday and Friday in Brussels to discuss the war in Ukraine, economic challenges, and illegal migration.
It seems that European governments who follow strict migration policies finally decided to take matters into their own hands and pressure the EU to change its course.
Austria’s center-right Chancellor Karl Nehammer threatened to block the joint final declaration of the summit if no concrete agreements are reached on migration issues. “Empty words will not suffice,” he told German newspaper Die Welt on Wednesday.
There finally needs to be a clear and unequivocal commitment to strengthen external border protection and to use corresponding financial resources from the EU budget for this,
Nehammer demanded. Last month, Nehammer called on the European Commission to assist Bulgarian border protection with two billion euros. The Austrian Chancellor has held two summits already, together with Orbán and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, and formed an alliance to fight illegal migration on the Balkan route.
Featured photo via Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán