Marco Gervasoni: Fidesz should’ve left the EPP long ago

“I see Fidesz’ decision to leave the People’s Party as a gesture of defending democracy. No matter how contradictory it may seem due to the Western press’ passion of portraying the Hungarian Prime Minister as a dictator, he continues to be the one who represents the people who elected him. Democracy within a country can only happen according to the will of its citizens” said Marco Gervasoni, Italian contemporary historian, professor at the University of Molise, opinion journalist for the center-right II Giornale newspaper, and member of numerous conservative organizations in an interview with out paper.

Helsinki, 2018. november 7. A magyar küldöttek helye az Európai Néppárt kongresszusán Helsinkiben a Messukeskus Kongresszusi Központban 2018. november 7-én. MTI/Koszticsák Szilárd Fotó: Koszticsák Szilárd

What reactions has this news caused among Italian center-right politicians?

– Italian Conservative politicians agree with the decision, especially considering the possibility that Fidesz may join the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) Group led by Giorgia Meloni. The mutual recognition and friendship between Meloni and Orbán is well known; they’ve met many times and supported each other in difficult moments. On this occasion as well, Giorgia Meloni assured the Hungarian Prime Minister of his solidarity. There was no reaction from the Forza Italia! party led by Silvio Berlusconi, which I personally missed considering the years-long connection that held the two parties together. Leader of Lega Nord, Matteo Salvini’s, message of compassion and friendship to the Hungarian PM was an unexpected surprise. It was not anticipated because the Draghi Cabinet, which he recently joined, strongly represents the European technocratic path.

If Fidesz joined the European Conservatives and Reformists Group, what effects would it have?

– It would absolutely represent a revival, given its position as a strong, governing party with a high-profile Prime Minister. Whenever the left portrays someone as a demon, it clearly means they’re doing their job well. It would also be important in a geopolitical sense: the Polish-Hungarian balance could attract more in the region like the Czechs and Slovaks, or even the Slovenians and the Croatians, but even the Austrians as we all know that Kurz (like Orbán) deviates from the EPP on many issues. I believe that in the end, Fidesz’ withdrawal could make many people aware of the fact that the EPP has divided itself and long-ago abandoned the values and worldview it originally represented.