Janos Boka: Our Performance Lends Weight

We asked Janos Boka, Hungary's minister for European Union Affairs, about the atmosphere of the Budapest EU summits, the central role of Hungary, transatlantic relations, the impact of the US elections and about illegal migration, to name a few topics. In an interview for Magyar Nemzet, the minister also spoke about how the new political era could shape Europe's future and why he considers the just adopted Budapest Declaration key to strengthening the EU competitiveness.

Hungary's EU Affairs Minister Janos Boka (Photo: Arpad Kurucz)

What was the political atmosphere like at the summits in Budapest? 
The atmosphere at the two summits was mostly that of openness and expectation. Openness means that the attitude of the organizers and the way the events were structured allowed for a truly open and frank exchange of views on strategic issues affecting the whole of the European continent. I would also say that the air in Hungary is liberating: participants could sense that there is a more colorful and direct dialogue on these issues in Hungary than in most countries in Europe, and this kind of openness permeated the whole summit. And the sense of anticipation came from the feeling that a new era in global relations, including transatlantic relations, was dawning following the US presidential elections. Everyone was looking to see what role Europe and Europeans could play in this new world order, which is likely to be accelerated by President Trump's inauguration.

How would you assess Hungary's role in shaping the atmosphere of the meetings? 
In addition to providing the venue, the Hungarian organizers actively contributed to this open and expectant atmosphere. In the structure of each event, the order and the choice of speakers, we sought to present the full range of strategic ideas. I don't think there has ever been a European Political Community(EPC) summit where we could hear from the Hungarian Prime Minister, the Ukrainian, French and Turkish Presidents, the Danish Prime Minister and then the Serbian President on the security challenges facing Europe. This provided the opportunity to platform the different approaches and perspectives of Central Europe, the Atlanticists, those building on European strategic autonomy, those of the Turkish world and the various Western Balkans' views. The resulting productive and inspiring dialogue is unprecedented in the history of European Political Community summits.

Were there any moments or exchanges that you found particularly memorable? 
It's not the details of the speeches and discussions at the summit, because the real value of these is that leaders can have frank exchanges of views informally, without press and public pressure. However, I have never attended a summit where such a sharp and intense political discourse unfolded as it did at the current EPC plenary session with the participation of the Ukrainian, Turkish and Serbian presidents. There were also memorable meetings on the sidelines of these events, such as the diplomatically significant discussion between the Turkish and Cypriot Presidents over coffee. And the breakout sessions produced a number of innovative proposals, such as in the fight against illegal migration, which can be built upon in future summits.

What exceptionally significant results have been achieved in these meetings? 
The European Political Community Summit had an orientation debate on the strategic challenges facing Europe, which provides a good basis for discussing the future of transatlantic relations. As regards the future of the Community, it was also agreed to examine the possibility of setting up supporting institutions to make this dialogue more structured and to develop the Community into a platform for the European security system. In this respect, Hungary will coordinate with Albania as the next host and will make relevant proposals for the next summit. At the European Council, we adopted the Budapest Declaration, which aims to strengthen European competitiveness. This declaration, which was also a central objective of our EU Presidency, sends a strong political message and sets out the priorities for the European institutions for the next five-year cycle.

What are the merits of the Hungarian government and the Hungarian EU Presidency in all this? 
We prepared the European Political Community Summit together with the previous host, the United Kingdom, and the next two hosts, Albania and Denmark. At the suggestion of Hungary, the challenges of illegal migration were addressed separately for the second time, and it seems that this issue will be a regular theme in the future, which our country contributed to signifiantly. The European Policy Community has previously discussed energy, transport and infocommunications infrastructure, but thanks to the Hungarian government, the focus centered on a generalized approach to economic security. This gave us the opportunity to discuss the key issues of connectivity and economic neutrality characterizing Hungarian economic policy. I also see the Budapest Declaration adopted at the European Council Summit as a credit to the Hungarian EU Presidency. We put the issue of competitiveness in the spotlight, in cooperation with the former Belgian Presidency. We also came up with the idea for the declaration and were actively involved in its drafting. It reflects the principles that we believe Europe can benefit from.

What can we expect from the Budapest Declaration? What concrete steps will it bring? What priorities does it lay out for Europe and Hungary? 
Europe's most serious problem is an economy weakened by war and bad decisions in Brussels. Europe's economy needs to be strengthened, and the Budapest Declaration is based on two pillars: a general policy and a specialized policy pillar. The general policy pillar takes stock of Europe's competitiveness problems, stressing that if the EU does not take immediate and decisive action, it could fall irreparably behind the US and China. Heads of state and government made it clear that competitiveness must be at the heart of the EU's next five-year institutional cycle and are ready to provide continued guidance to the European institutions in this area. They also called for the competitiveness dimension to be implemented in all policy areas and for all EU legislation to be examined from a competitiveness perspective in the future. Among the policy areas, energy policy will be a priority, as the European institutions will now have a role to play in bringing down energy prices. Other priorities include strengthening the internal market, in particular in the services sector, in completing the banking and capital markets union, and in improving the efficiency of research and development and increasing resources. This also includes strengthening the European security and defense policy, in particular the development of the European defense industry, which is key not only in terms of competitiveness but also in terms of European autonomy and adopting responsibility. There is also a need to drastically reduce the administrative burden. The Declaration calls for a 25 percent reduction in reporting obligations starting already in 2025.

Photo: Arpad Kurucz 

Migration was also a high priority topic. Was there any significant progress made here?
A growing number of member states are recognizing that the EU's current migration policy is not working and that the measures adopted in the past are not solving the problem. It has become, as Hungary has said from the beginning, that pro-immigration policies are destroying European countries, and we are seeing the consequences every day. Violence and the threat of terrorism have shot up to new levels, public safety has deteriorated, women and Jews are being attacked, and parallel societies are developing. These problems cannot be swept under the carpet. At the European Political Community meeting, leaders were already discussing new and innovative ways to better tackle illegal migration and the social problems it causes. For example, the creation of reception centers outside Europe, where asylum applications would be assessed and only those who are eligible would be allowed to enter the EU, also came up. They also discussed how to more effectively expel those who are in the EU without having legal grounds. They also proposed facilities outside Europe where those awaiting deportation could be housed pending repatriation. The obstacles to these policy decisions were also discussed, including certain international treaties and judicial fora where activist judgments often thwart the implementation of these measures. The assembled leaders argued for a political response in this, as well.

Did the US election results and the war in our neighborhood have an impact on the summits? 
The war next door and the outcome of the US presidential election were both central themes at the summit. There was a widespread consensus that the outcome of the US election would have some bearing on the outcome of the war between Russia and Ukraine. From the outset, Hungary has argued that Trump's re-election could create a chance for peace in Europe, as he is considered to be the leader to take the initiative in bringing the war to an end as soon as possible, which would open a new chapter for Europe in terms of both economic and security policy. This expectation was also present at the EPC meeting, and I hope that we will not be disappointed.

What changes can we expect in EU policy and in transatlantic relations? 
I expect a more pragmatic strategy based on mutual benefits to replace the previous ideology-driven, Democrat policy with little respect for the sovereignty of European states. President Trump is committed to US interests, which could also free Europe from its current constraints and give it the opportunity to recognize and act on its own strategic interests. I hope that this will broaden Europe's and the EU's room for manoeuvre and that we can take European strategic autonomy more seriously. Europe can thus be one of the autonomous poles of the new global world order, which the re-election of President Trump can strengthen and accelerate.

Can the success of the Budapest summits improve relations between Hungary and Brussels? 
I think it is unlikely, and we had no such expectations before the EPC or the informal European Council summits. The conflicts between Hungary and Brussels are deeply rooted and our ideas about European cooperation are fundamentally different. Two successful, well-organized events in Budapest will not change this fundamental difference, no matter how well we have achieved all the objectives we set out to achieve. It is true that Hungary has hosted the biggest diplomatic event in its history and is not isolated internationally, but our fundamental political conflicts with the EU institutions remain. The prime minister alluded to this in his press conference following the European Council meeting, saying that although we have reached agreement on a number of issues, our disputes with Brussels and the EU institutions will continue, and we will continue to represent Hungarian interests. I do not expect any change in this respect in the foreseeable future. Change has already happened in the US, but not yet in the Brussels administration.

The General Affairs Council is taking place next week in Brussels. What do you expect? 
The November General Affairs Council will prepare December's European Council meeting, where the usual strategic issues will be discussed, including the war between Russia and Ukraine, migration and the situation in the Middle East. I hope that the December meeting will be the occasion for the strategic debate on Ukraine initiated by the Hungarian prime minister. I believe that the election of Trump makes it even more inevitable that European leaders discuss at the highest level the issues of the Russia-Ukraine war and the future of European strategy. The General Affairs Council will also be the occasion for the 'two minutes of hate', to borrow from Orwell's novel 1984 - when the'll again report on the current standing of the Article 7 proceedings against Hungary, which will provide another opportunity for some to play ad nauseam their same old, much worn, tunes of complaints against us.

What other key events and decisions are expected to take place during Hungary's EU Presidency? 
We are placing great emphasis on the EU-Western Balkans Summit, which is scheduled to take place during the December European Council meeting. One of the main objectives of the Hungarian Presidency is to accelerate the European integration of the Western Balkans. Substantial accession negotiations have already started with Albania, and we are confident that other Western Balkan countries can take further steps towards membership. This Summit is an excellent opportunity for EU member states to express their commitment to the European perspective for the Western Balkans. The enlargement of the Schengen area is also important for us, with the aim of Romania and Bulgaria becoming full members. The Hungarian Presidency is working to build the necessary political consensus, and I am optimistic about that too. We are also working to close further legislative chapters in the Council and in the trilogues with the European Parliament.

To what extent do you think Hungary's influence, power and prestige have been enhanced by the EU summits and the US presidential election? 
I would suggest that we maintain both our assertiveness and sense of reality. Hungary's weight and strength does not depend on who our friends are or with whom we have good relations. The country's strength has always come from our economic, political and military achievements, and from the fact that we are a nation with more than a thousand years of statehood in the Carpathian Basin - Indeed, it is these that give us a backbone and our weight. At the same time, it is a fact that the incoming US administration can offer Hungary many economic and political opportunities. Never before has Hungary had such a strong ally as in the new US president. We are trying to take advantage of these opportunities, seeking agreements of mutual benefit. The Hungarian prime minister and government are preparing to open a new chapter in transatlantic economic and political relations.

Cover photo: Hungary's EU Affairs Minister Janos Boka (Photo: Arpad Kurucz).