PM Orban: All of Europe suffers from Brussels' response to war

There are pro-war governments, but people are pro-peace, Viktor Orban told Hungary's public radio on Friday morning. The Hungarian prime minister indicated that if the US President wanted to, he could end the war. He also said he had some rather strong thoughts on Ukraine having raised the transit tariffs. He also emphasized that his government's goal was to ensure that those who have children are better off financially than those who do not. He said that if the European Union should fail to extend the ban on Ukrainian grain imports, this will be done within the government's national remit.

– I'm also impatient and mad about the inflation, just like everyone else. This is a by-product of European politics, first of all the war. If the war came to an end, the economic situation would improve immediately, PM Orban told Hungary's public Kossuth radio on Friday morning. He said that speculators are winning, while countries are losing on the war.

All of Europe is suffering from Brussels' response to the war,

– he added.

The prime minister also indicated that we cannot exempt ourselves from the effects of war, not even if we wanted to. – We cannot expect that a fairy waving a magic wand will terminate the war, unless of course US President Joe Biden turns into a fairy. If he wanted to, he could end the war," Mr Orban pointed out.

Transit fare hikes cost HUF 48 billion 

He said he believed that the current measures would be enough to bring inflation below ten percent by the end of this year. There is truth in the Hungarian Competition Authority's (GVH) finding that large multinational chains are swift to take advantage of any opportunity to raise prices, which plays a key role in shaping inflation, Mr Orban said. We must pay heed to what the world is doing., For instance, some countries have reintroduced their price caps on petrol, he added.

He said he had some rather strong thoughts about Ukraine having raised the transit fees.

According to PM Orban, Hungary is forced to import fuel at three and a half times its normal price, which means an extra HUF 48 billion. This will push up the price of petrol and increase inflation by a half percent, he said. However, we will do our utmost to ensure that this policy of raising the tariffs for using the pipeline to the sky, thereby putting Hungarian families in a difficult situation, is not continued," he said.

Hungary has the lowest electricity and gas prices

– If anything should lead to growing numbers in the peace camp, it's not the discretion of the US, but rather the pressure put on individual governments by their own electorate, PM Orban said. He indicated that there are indeed pro-war governments, adding, however, that the people are pro-peace.

People fail to understand why we won't spend on our own economy, and why we are being forced to finance a war that's produced a stalemate, and where no military solution is possible, Mr Orban said.

He emphasized that in Hungary, maintaining the government-sponsored utility price cap scheme is a huge expense.

– Hungary still boasts the lowest electricity and gas prices, which costs money. Hungarian people keep saying that something must be done, and this is even more true in the West. Eventually, the worsening of the economic situation will be the decisive factor forcing EU governments to enter the peace camp, Mr Orban said.

– Ukraine would not be able to fight this war, if we did not give it weapons and lots of money, he said, adding that this did not bring us closer to peace, but rather further away from it. The US presidential race is approaching, so we will see how this may affect the war, he said.

We cannot introduce short-sighted measures

In European politics, family is important to those who want to support young people and families, who think in terms of their country and nation, and who have children and grandchildren, the prime minister said.

– The way we think is that if we have a grandchild this year, then he or she will still be alive in 2103. This means we can't just make short-term decisions. The decisions we make now will shape the world we will live in.

– Mr Orban said. 

He pointed out that those who do not have children do not think this way. He added that, as Europe is dominated by leaders who do not have children, the issue of demography is not on the agenda. The people who decide to have children are those who believe that there are things in the world that are more important than themselves, Mr Orban said, adding that those who cannot accept this tend to have no, or very few children.

– The government's goal is to ensure that those who have children are better off financially than those who don't. Because people who have kids are participating in the shaping of the future, but those without don't, 

– Mr Orban opined. He also made mention of the fact that the measures taken since 2010 had resulted in 160,000 more children being born and many homes being renovated from scratch. He added, however, that Hungarians take all these achievements for granted, which is why he is reluctant to talk about these successes. Instead, he focuses on how to move forward the government's family support scheme, in order to increase the number of childbirths.

PM Orban stressed that Italy's family policy scheme is eerily similar to Hungary's, which means the Hungarian family policy is no lnoger a rarity.

"We have a good chance of achieving a family-friendly turnaround in Brussels", Mr Orban said, adding that the number of family-friendly governments in Europe could increase. He also pointed out that family-centric governance and the issue of demography would be among the key programs during the Hungarian Presidency.

The stakes are very high at the elections. We need a turnaround in Brussels. We need peace and we need leadership that wants to work with other regions of the world, stop migration and the gender propaganda, abandon the double standards against Poland and Hungary, and take family policy seriously,

– he added.

We expect a heavy fight over Ukrainian grain

– The ban on Ukrainian grain imports expires today. If the EU does not extend it by midnight tonight, a few countries - the Romanians, Hungarians, Poles and Slovaks - will join forces to extend it, and there will be a serious fight in Brussels over this, Mr Orban said. Brussels is unwilling to take the side of the European people, and represents quite different interests, he insisted. 

– When it comes to grain, Brussels does not represent Polish, Slovakian, Romanian or Hungarian interests. It represents US American interests, 

– PM Orban contended. 

He explained that Ukrainian grain is not Ukrainian grain, but rather a commercial product that comes from US-owned territory, which opens up a new dimension to the debate on Ukraine. Hungarians have been mistreated with regard to Ukrainian grain, which is why we fought to strike a deal in Brussels that prevents Ukrainian grain from being imported into Central European countries in a way that it stays here, Mr Orban stressed.

– It can pass our territory, but it cannot stay in Europe, 

– he underlined.

Cover photo: Hungarian PM Viktor Orban in the studio of Hungary's public Kossuth Radio (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)