Brussels' "Punishment" for Hungary

Brussels will host an informal meeting of EU foreign and defense ministers at the end of August, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell announced at a press conference following the regular monthly meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell (Photo: JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

Josep Borrell described his decision as a symbolic consequence of Prime Minister Viktor Orban's trip to Moscow earlier this month to discuss peace with Russian President Vladimir Putin without the approval of his EU partners.

I have decided to convene informal meetings of EU Foreign Affairs and Defence Ministers in Brussels, after the summer break.

At today’s #FAC, EU Member States overwhelmingly criticized Hungary’s lack of sincere and loyal cooperation.

— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) July 22, 2024

He said that each EU member state has the right to choose its foreign policy, but must loyally align itself with the common foreign policy position.

Josep Borrell said that the EU wants peace in Ukraine, but that a lasting and just peace requires guaranteeing Ukraine's sovereignty and holding the perpetrators of war crimes to account.

He said Russian missile strikes on Ukraine, including its attack on a children's hospital in Kyiv, showed that Ukraine's air defenses must be reinforced. He added that most EU states are considering to increase their aid and assistance to Ukraine to enable the country to repel these attacks. He highlighted the attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, stressing that the situation will likely become more serious in the winter and that "we" should not wait until then. He emphasized that the peace plan presented by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is the only peace plan that will be accepted in Brussels.

Russia is the aggressor and Ukraine is the victim, defending itself,

– the High Representative said, adding that it is not the EU but Russian President Vladimir Putin who is pursuing a pro-war policy.

He also stressed that any peace plan that disregards Ukraine's sovereignty and fails to prescribe the prosecution of war criminals only serves Putin and will not bring real peace.

In his response following a meeting of EU foreign ministers, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto remarked that

this debate is at a kindergarten level.

As Magyar Nemzet highlighted earlier, Slovakia will not attack Hungary and its presidency of the Council of the European Union in any way.

I have instructed Slovakia's representatives in the EU bodies not to attack Hungary and the Hungarian EU Presidency in any shape or form,

– Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said in a video message posted on his social media.

I wonder if there comes a time when I'll have to ask the EU for permission to travel abroad. After the assassination attempt on me prevented me from making an official visit to China, we are now preparing to do this trip in the autumn,

–  Mr. Fico said.

For us, it completely didn't matter 

As for today's discussion on whether to hold the informal meeting of foreign ministers in Budapest in August, well, this is a question that we completely don't care about. 13 member states, including the big countries, were in favor of Budapest, while 5 countries argued against Budapest and 8 member states said it didn't matter," Mate Paczolay, the foreign affairs minitry spokesman, told our newspaper. - Hungary also said that it doesn't matter, leaving the matter to the decision of the High Representative, who, ignoring the majority opinion, came to the decision that the informal meeting will not be held in Budapest, he added.

Focus on the conflict in the Middle East

Mr. Borrell also addressed the armed conflict in the Gaza Strip, highlighting the humanitarian tragedy, the importance of a ceasefire and the need for a two-state solution. He said over 17,000 children were now orphaned in the Gaza Strip, and he pointed out that while hundreds of truckloads of humanitarian aid had entered the region before the war, by now this number has dropped to 14. He described the area as the Mogadishu of the Mediterranean, referring to the chaotic situation in Somalia's capital.

Whatever you say, it is a tragedy, it is intolerable, and everything must be done to put an end to it,

– he said, adding that 96 percent of Gazans are now living in food insecurity. Referring to the rulings of the UN International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague on Israel, he said that international institutions only lay down the law and can make recommendations, but these must be enforced by politicians on the ground.

Cover photo: EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell (Photo: AFP/Justin Tallis)