The European Parliament held the traditional session with the rotating chairman of the EU Council, which this semester is Hungary, on Oct. 9. The “Ursula coalition” who back EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (from the Greens to the Christian Democrats) had prepared a trap for Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who currently holds the office of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Whereas Orbán was expected to stick to protocol, by illustrating the priorities of the Hungarian presidency—which he did—the opposition organized a verbal assault on Orbán with the usual allegations against his government, from “Russia-friendly” to alleged violations of human rights, etc. Their aim was to prevent a discussion on the issues presented by Orbán, which they managed to do.
However, Orbán answered blow for blow, turning the tables against his critics, starting with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Before the entrance to the plenary room, a group of MEPs staged an anti-Orbán protest with posters saying “Democrats against Autocrats.”
In his opening speech, Orbán highlighted competitiveness as a key issue for the Presidency, pointing to energy prices as a key obstacle. “As a result of moving away from Russian energy sources, the EU has lost significant GDP growth,” he said. “We should not fall into the illusion that the green transition in itself offers a solution to the problem,” he argued, adding that decarbonization has led to slowing down of productivity and the loss of jobs.
As he finished his speech, clowns from the left side of the aisle started to chant “Bella Ciao.”
Von der Leyen then attacked Hungary’s stance on Russia, comparing the Ukrainians to the Hungarians who fought against the Soviet occupation in 1956. She deplored that “one member state in particular” is still trying to buy fossil fuels from Russia despite the EU’s commitment to be energy independent. On migration, she condemned Hungary’s decision to release convicted smugglers and questioned its visa policies, such as inviting Russian nationals into the EU without additional checks, warning these “make Hungary a security risk, not only for Hungary but for all member states.” She urged Hungary to “serve the cause of European unity” rather than diverging from shared values.
In a long speech, Orbán replied, accusing von der Leyen of false statements and of being responsible for failed policies. He regretted that she had gone beyond the bounds of the role attributed by the European Treaty to the Commission, i.e., the role of neutral “Guardian of the Treaties.” Instead, she is “turning the Guardian of the Treaty into a political weapon.”
“I have deliberately avoided Ukraine in connection with the Presidency, but if you want to talk about it, let us talk about it,” Orbán said. Her comparison of the 1956 Hungarian freedom fighters with Ukraine today is “wrong and a desecration of the memory of the Hungarian freedom fighters.”
“As the Anglo-Saxon press says, if we are to win, we must first have the courage to admit that we are losing. Because the fact is that we are losing on the Ukrainian front. And you are pretending here that we are not. The reality is that, thanks in part to the President of the Commission, the European Union has entered this war recklessly, on the basis of miscalculations and with a flawed strategy. If we want to win, the current losing strategy must be changed. It is a badly planned and badly executed strategy. If we continue on this path, we will lose. If we want Ukraine not to lose, we need to change strategy. I suggest you consider this.”
“In every war there must be diplomacy. There must be communication, direct or indirect contacts. If we fail to do this, we will go deeper and deeper into the pit of war. More and more desperate situations will arise, more and more people will die, hundreds of thousands are dying as we speak, thousands are dying in Ukraine. There will be no solution to this conflict on the battlefield with this strategy. That is why I suggest that we should instead argue for peace, argue for a ceasefire, and make a different strategy, because we are all going to lose out on that.”
Orbán went on answering all other allegations raised by von der Leyen and faction leaders of her majority, often turning such allegations against his critics. In particular, he chastised the anti-democratic tactics employed by EU institutions and leaders against his party and the “Patriots for Europe” faction. His full speech with English voice-over can be watched here.
