About: Hungary
EU funds fact-checking website in Hungary ahead of crucial elections
Agence France-Presse (AFP) is launching a website to fight disinformation in Hungary, just three months before elections that will determine Orbán’s grip on power - however, experts remain sceptical.
Trump praises Hungary’s Orbán in pre-election letter
Former US president Donald Trump on Monday (3 January) enthusiastically backed the reelection of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a hardline hero who has been accused of creeping authoritarianism.
Personal and professional links between Orbán and new Euronews owner
The venture capital firm set to acquire pan-European media outlet Euronews has long-standing personal and professional ties to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has drawn widespread criticism for having presided over a recent worsening of media pluralism in Hungary.
Hungary’s Orbán attacks EU for ‘brutal sabotage’ in funds row
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on Tuesday (21 December) said the EU's withholding of funds was "the most brutal sabotage" as he insisted his country would stick by harsh asylum rules.
Seven dead as vehicle carrying migrants crashes in Hungary
Seven people died and four others were injured when a vehicle carrying migrants crashed into a flower shop in Hungary as the driver sought to dodge the police, officials said Tuesday (14 December).
France and Hungary set conciliatory tone as Macron visits Budapest
President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday (13 December) France was willing to "work together for Europe" with Hungary despite the countries' political differences, striking a conciliatory note as Paris prepares to take over the European Union's presidency.
Biden talks to central Europe leaders, pledges more ‘military capabilities’
US President Joe Biden promised central European NATO members "additional military capabilities" on Thursday (9 December) and pledged to involve them in decisions about the region, Lithuania's presidential advisor said.
Renewing democracy is ‘defining challenge of our time,’ Biden tells summit
US President Joe Biden gathered over 100 world leaders at a summit and made a plea to bolster democracies around the world, calling safeguarding rights and freedoms in the face of rising authoritarianism the "defining challenge" of the current era.
Adviser says court should dismiss legal challenge to linking EU money with rule of law
The legal adviser of the top EU court said on Thursday (2 December) Budapest and Warsaw's legal challenges to the EU law that links disbursement of bloc funds to rule of law standards should be dismissed.
Biden invites around 110 countries to virtual summit on democracy
President Joe Biden has invited around 110 countries to a virtual summit on democracy in December, including most of Western allies but not Hungary and Turkey, according to a list posted on the State Department website on Tuesday (23 November)....
Hungarian media to publish LGBTI campaign despite risk of fines
Three television channels and several magazines will publish an awareness campaign to educate on LGBTI families, despite the Hungarian media regulator having earlier initiated proceedings against networks on the same grounds, EURACTIV's media partner Telex reported.
Budapest to Luxembourg court: Judgment ‘practically’ means supporting human trafficking
Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga accused EU judges in Luxembourg of making Budapest "practically support human trafficking" in her response to a ruling that found Hungary's 2018 law threatening jail sentences on anyone helping asylum seekers had violated bloc rules.
EU mulls approving Hungary, Poland recovery plans, with conditions
The EU is prepared to approve multi-billion-euro recovery plans for Hungary and Poland in the coming weeks, but with strict conditions attached, bloc officials said.
Making equality bodies more independent cannot protect them from EU governments
A recent Hungarian example shows that the brewing EU legislation that will aim to bolster the bloc's discrimination fighting bodies will not be enough to keep straying governments in check, Máté Szabó, a civil rights lawyer at TASZ (Hungarian Civil Liberties Union), warned in a video interview with EURACTIV.
Pro-EU Klara Dobrev leads in opposition primary to take on Hungary’s Orbán
Klara Dobrev, a 49-year-old lawyer, has emerged as the front-runner in a joint opposition bid to unseat Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in 2022 elections, partial results of an opposition primary showed on Thursday (30 September).
Hungary hits out at Brussels’ funding ‘blackmail’
The Hungarian government on Tuesday (28 September) condemned what it termed Brussels' "blackmail" over the allocation of EU funding as differences between the eastern member and the European Union institutions deepen.
Hungarian minister: Schinas wants to ‘hide’ migration from German, French voters
Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga has lashed out against European Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas after he told EURACTIV in an interview that the much-awaited European migration pact should be approved after the French elections due next year.
Hungary equates ‘LGBT promotion’ in films with horror in viewing age ratings
Hungary's media regulator published guidelines for broadcasters to comply with new LGBT laws on Wednesday (15 September), relegating some films portraying homosexuality or gender identity issues to the same age group restrictions as gory horror movies.
In Hungary, pope says anti-Semitism ‘fuse’ must not be allowed to burn
Pope Francis called on Sunday (12 September) for vigilance against a rise in anti-Semitism, saying during a brief trip to Hungary this was a "fuse that must not be allowed to burn."
Vucic and Orban formalise their ‘special relationship’
Hungary, whose government has been at odds with Brussels for a long time, has emerged as a major pro-Serbian lobbyist within the EU and this special "illiberal" relationship was formalised on Wednesday (8 September), Serbian journalist Darko Čačić reports for EURACTIV Bulgaria.
Why Orbán’s ‘child protection referendum’ makes no sense, and why it does
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's controversial referendum about the so-called "Child Protection Act", which triggered infringement procedures by the European Commission over its measures targeting the LGBTQ+ community, may not be legally sound but makes considerable political sense, writes Zoltán Kovács.
Hungary, Poland, Serbia: China’s backdoors to Europe
China benefits from divisions that prevent the EU from forming a unified front against it. That is why relations with EU members Hungary and Poland, as well as with the Western Balkans and Serbia in particular, are getting stronger, writes Antonia Colibasanu.
EP presses ahead to sue Commission for dragging its feet on rule of law
The main organisational body of the European Parliament has given the go-ahead to continue the drawn-out procedure of suing the executive for failing to activate the budgetary conditionality linking EU funds to rule of law amid doubts over the action's speed and efficacy.