Brussels Betrays Its Own Values

The European Commission has announced a 500-million-euro incentive package to attract American researchers to the continent. The program’s goal is to recruit ideological allies in research and education, even if it means undermining sovereignty and academic freedom.

Instead of academic freedom, Brussels is funding political ideology, a researcher says (Source: AFP)

Brussels Undermines National Knowledge Policies

Decisions by EU institutions are increasingly falling prey to political agendas, with ideological commitment all the more frequently influencing the allocation of development funds. Programs launched by the European Commission — such as Horizon Europe and the Rights and Values program — aim to establish ideologies and concepts in Europe that are fundamentally at odds with Europe's traditional civilizational values.

Petri argues that Brussels not only distorts te distribution of funds, but also sidelines scientific centers that focus research on sovereignty, family policy, migration, religion, or national identity

The Sovereignty Index report released by the Free Europe Institute highlights that national sovereignty only exists when a nation is able to determine its own developmental directions — economically, culturally, and scientifically.

In response to the distorting effects of foreign funding, Hungary has already taken measures in the past — such as the Stop Soros! legislative package and restrictions on the operations of the Central European University (CEU) — to reduce the barely concealed ideological and political influence of foreign-funded educational and civil society organizations.

By trying to compete globally through ideological imports and not on the basis of its own values and interests, Brussels is making itself — and its member states — vulnerable.

Cover photo: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (Photo: AFP)