Brussels Will Continue to Interfere in Hungarian Domestic Politics, Think Tank Chief Says

According to Agoston Samuel Mraz, head of Nezopont Institute, Hungary should be prepared for major attempts by Brussels to intervene in internal affairs.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen rings starting bell during the weekly meeting of the College of Commissioners at the EU headquarters in Brussels, October 2, 2024 (Photo: John Thys, Source: AFP)

Speaking on public TV M1 news channel's 48 Minutes program, Agoston Samuel Mraz said that the Hungarian government had come under unprecedented fire at last week's European Parliament (EP) plenary, and the European People's Party (EPP) had even suggested in a post on a social media that it was time for Viktor Orban to step down.

They are in effect openly waging a campaign from Brussels against the Hungarian government, in essence for a change of government.

In the program, former Hungarian Social Democrat (SZDSZ) MP and MEP Istvan Szent-Ivanyi, noted that it is common practice in world politics today for players in the political arena to show support for one or another potential leader of another country. The think tank chief, however, pointed out that some politicians sitting in the EP can express more than their mere opinions.

Those who oppose the Hungarian government, using their majority and the European Commission - a political body, can massively interfere in the internal affairs of another country, such as Hungary, by, among other things, exerting pressure, by launching procedures and measures or simply by imposing migration-related obligations,

the analyst said, stressing that we must be prepared for continued serious attempts by Brussels to interfere in Hungarian domestic politics until the 2026 national parliamentary elections. One reason for this, he said, is that the EP's leading party group, the European People's Party (EPP), has failed to accept Hungary's strong position on migration, and over the past decade has, in fact, increasingly catered to those in the center, left-wing and liberal camps, as opposed to those on the Right.

Istvan Szent-Ivanyi maintains that the EPP also turned its back on the ruling Fidesz party and came into conflict with the Hungarian government over issues such as contained in the Sargentini report on the rule of law. In his view, the Hungarian government would better serve to put the country in a more favorable position by moving closer to the leading political forces in the EU, rather than by further deepening the conflicts.

According to Agoston Samuel Mraz, the fact that migration has become the EU's most pressing problem, and that it has also become the focal point of some countries' elections, could have a major impact on the political orientation of EU member states and eventually of the European Commission. The analyst said that anyone who has listened to the Hungarian prime minister in recent years and looked at opinion polls, knows that there is a public aversion to migration, however the mainstream never thought that this view would ever gain political representation and political success.