Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s prime minister, vowed to ‘Make Europe Great Again’ on Monday as his government took the helm of the EU Council from Belgium.
Hungary will hold the bloc’s presidency for the next six months after Orbán took over from Belgium’s Alexander De Croo in Brussels on Monday. When Hungary’s term expires on December 31, Poland will assume the role from January 1 2025.
Orbán marked the occasion with a post on the X platform that featured a slogan borrowed from U.S. presidential hopeful Donald Trump: “Everybody’s happy that it’s our turn to make Europe great again! #MEGA,” he tweeted.
Ódor also reassured both media and diplomats alike that Hungary sought to be an honest intermediary.
"It will be a presidency like any other,” Ódor told journalists. “We will be honest mediators, we will try to cooperate sincerely with EU countries and institutions." He said this principle would also be extended to issues concerning Ukraine, a topic that has marginalized Hungary within the EU due to Budapest’s opposition to supporting Kyiv. But Ódor said Hungary would deal with Kyiv if necessary.
Orbán marked the occasion with a post on the X platform that featured a slogan borrowed from U.S. presidential hopeful Donald Trump: “Everybody’s happy that it’s our turn to make Europe great again! #MEGA,” he tweeted.
“Now it’s up to Hungary and PM Viktor Orbán,” De Croo tweeted in turn. “I wish [Hungary’s EU presidency] luck and trust you will deliver in the interest of all EU citizens.”Today Hungary assumed the Presidency of the Council of the European Union from #Belgium. Had a very joyful handing over ceremony with Prime Minister @alexanderdecroo today. Everybody’s happy that it’s our turn to make Europe great again! #MEGA pic.twitter.com/YsDNywdCJX
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) July 1, 2024
‘Make Europe Great Again’ will be the motto of Budapest’s six-month presidency, a slogan widely seen in Brussels as a provocation in the face of the widespread aversion to Trump expressed by many Eurocrats. However, Budapest’s ambassador to the bloc, Bálint Ódor, played down the controversy telling journalists he was not sure Trump had ever sought to make Europe great again.Now it’s up to Hungary and @PM_ViktorOrban
— Alexander De Croo 🇧🇪🇪🇺 (@alexanderdecroo) July 1, 2024
Proud of the track record of @EU2024BE which delivered on its ambition to protect our citizens, strengthen our economy and prepare for Europe’s future.
I wish @HU24EU luck and trust you will deliver in the interest of all EU citizens. pic.twitter.com/DkGx7uz9aY
Ódor also reassured both media and diplomats alike that Hungary sought to be an honest intermediary.
"It will be a presidency like any other,” Ódor told journalists. “We will be honest mediators, we will try to cooperate sincerely with EU countries and institutions." He said this principle would also be extended to issues concerning Ukraine, a topic that has marginalized Hungary within the EU due to Budapest’s opposition to supporting Kyiv. But Ódor said Hungary would deal with Kyiv if necessary.
Challenging times
In its presidential program, Hungary said that it was taking over the role “at a time of extraordinary circumstances and challenges.”
“Our continent is facing common challenges due to the war in our neighborhood, the EU lagging more and more behind its global competitors, a fragile security situation, illegal migration, the vulnerability of international supply chains, natural disasters, the effects of climate change, and the impact of demographic trends,” the program said.
Many Brussels diplomats have pointed out that most of the issues related directly to the war in Ukraine have already been settled by the outgoing Belgian presidency, with a 14th package of sanctions on Moscow pushed through at the Council’s June sitting. Accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova were also initiated and a bilateral security agreement was signed between the EU and Kyiv, in addition to which consensus was reached on using frozen Russian assets to benefit Ukraine.
One unnamed member state diplomat was quoted by the Polish Press Agency as saying talks of being an honest mediator had to be more than just words to calm anxieties.
“They need the support of other capitals and the European Commission itself in order to achieve any of their plans,” the source said. “A good presidency manages to settle issues that are not always in line with the national interest of their country.”
Source: PAP, The Brussels Times
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