Hungary and Poland have been clashing with Brussels and its partners for years. Over and over again, due to laws, the treatment of judges, for failing to comply with Court of Justice rulings, for its foreign policy and the sanctions against Russia (in the Hungarian case) and, especially, for everything related to the rule of law . The situation is frozen, and affects the regular functioning of the Union. But now it threatens to escalate a step further. The European legislature ends with the June 2024 elections, in less than a year, and there are a good number of important dossiers that have to go ahead and require unanimity. Under normal conditions it would be difficult, but after the latest clashes, and especially on the immigration issue, the most sensitive members of the Union are threatening without too much concealment to pull the nuclear veto button as much as necessary to achieve concessions in the dossiers that most they affect them.
It is by no means exceptional for a country to block an issue due to dissatisfaction in another or others, but it is not the norm nor is it particularly well regarded. In the EU, sensitivities are understood, consensus is sought, but the only way to function is by assuming defeats and not crowing too much about victories. Hungary, however, is no longer hiding. This week it has announced that it is postponing any parliamentary vote on Sweden’s possible NATO membership until after the summer until September at the earliest, just like Turkey. It does not have the same demands as Erdogan, but Sweden has until next Saturday the controls of the Presidency of the Council of the EU, it is the one that seeks the agreements, the one that writes the texts and the one that takes them to a vote when it believes that they are mature enough for a majority. That was done the other day with migration, and that has been done in the past with issues of the rule of law, and in certain latitudes it is not forgiven.
On Tuesday afternoon, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, met by videoconference to prepare the European Council that this Thursday and Friday will bring together the heads of state and government of The 27th. An ‘omnibus’ summit in which the leaders will address the situation in Ukraine and the attempted coup in Russia, the immigration issue, foreign relations, the economic outlook and in which they will have a new strategic discussion on China . Michel has been seen with each and every one of those who will attend to gauge the positions, but there have only been those who have raised their tone warning that curves are coming: Orban and the Pole Mateusz Morawiecki.
“The proposal for the revision of the EU Budget is frivolous and inadequate for debate,” Orban said, referring to the European Commission’s proposal just a few days ago, which called for member states to contribute up to a total of An additional 66,000 million euros to be able to complete the objectives of the legislature, and especially financial aid to Ukraine, aid to countries receiving migration or to cover the impact on community accounts of inflation, and that will begin to be dealt with now. “Brussels would give a total of 50,000 million euros in aid to Ukraine, while the use of EU funds sent to the country since the outbreak of the war remains unclear. Brussels demands additional contributions from member states to cover the budget deficit caused by the interest rate hike while continuing to withhold money owed to Hungary and Poland. And instead of stopping illegal immigration, Brussels intends to spend billions to support the flow of illegal immigrants to Europe and further increase the EU’s bureaucracy,” the Hungarian summed up.
“We will never accept a mandatory system”For his part, the Polish prime minister said about the refugee distribution system that was approved by a qualified majority just a week ago by the 27 Interior Ministers, with the opposition of Warsaw and Budapest. “We do not agree with any quota, with any quota, with any allocation of migrants and we articulate very clearly that Europe must have mechanisms to protect itself from external migration,” he added, stressing that as far as they are concerned, there is no agreement at the European level. , because such delicate issues should be resolved only unanimously, without majorities or voting.