BRUSSELS (AN) — Hungary assumed the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, granting Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a frequent critic of the E.U., key agenda-setting powers for the next six months.
Hungary's ascent on Monday gives Orban, accused of eroding democracy at home, a significant platform as far-right parties gain ground across Europe and crucial decisions loom on Ukraine aid and E.U. enlargement.
His ability to shape the bloc's agenda, however, is more constrained than his "Make Europe Great Again" slogan suggests. His tenure also is limited by the political calendar and shortened by the summer recess.
E.U. leaders worked overtime in the final weeks of Belgium's presidency to limit Hungary's ability to obstruct key initiatives. Major legislative work is unlikely in the coming months with European Parliament elections just completed and a new Commission yet to be formed.
The outgoing Belgian presidency rushed through several measures that Hungary might have blocked, including a nature restoration law, the 14th sanctions package against Russia, and opening accession talks with Moldova and Ukraine.
The E.U. used a legal loophole last week to release 1.4 billion euros in Ukraine aid without Hungarian approval. Orban opposes military assistance for Kyiv and is the only European leader to maintain relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Hungary's obstruction of key files under Belgium's presidency led to an extraordinary step: calling on E.U. members to strip Hungary of its voting rights by advancing the E.U.'s censure procedure against Budapest.
Some E.U. lawmakers called for Hungary's presidency to be suspended. Daniel Freund and Damian Boeslanger, German members of European Parliament, got 20,000 Europeans to sign a letter urging suspension.
"It is time the E.U. stands up against the bullying of a government that clearly has issues subscribing to the most basic of our European principles and values," Freund wrote.
Though Orban's impact may be muted, the outcome could still affect European integration and the ability to present a united front globally.
Symbol over substance
The Council of the European Union is one of the bloc's three legislative arms. While the head of state of the presiding country doesn't have an official position within the presidency, Orban, having centralized his government around him, will likely exert significant influence over Hungary's decisions at the helm.
Faced with the legislative reality he has little power to effect key E.U. files, Orban appears to be preparing to use the spotlight granted by the presidency to promote his vision of a more conservative, nationalist Europe.
On the eve of Hungary's term, Orban announced plans for a new European Parliament group, "Patriots for Europe," including Austria's Freedom Party and the Czech ANO party. In Vienna, he declared the alliance's goal is to become "the largest group of right-wing forces in Europe."
Orban contrasted the group's priorities of "peace, security and development" with the "war, migration and stagnation" he claims result from "Brussels elite" policies. However, the alliance currently includes only the 7th and 8th largest hard-right parties, falling short of the seven-party minimum for official group status.
Brussels insiders speculate Marine Le Pen's populist, anti-immigrant National Rally party in France and Matteo Salvini's similar League in Italy might join, potentially elevating the groups to rival the hard-right European Conservatives and Reformists led by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for the third-largest spot in Parliament.
Barring an extension, Orban must collect enough allies before Thursday for the group to be eligible to fight for the E.U.'s top parliamentary jobs.
The move coincides with far-right gains across Europe. Le Pen's party secured 33.5% in recent French regional elections. Germany faces a rising Alternative for Germany party, while the Netherlands has a new far-right government. Austria's far-right is poised for gains in September elections.
Orban's far-right alliance marks a dramatic shift from his roots as a liberal reformer. In 1989, he called for Soviet troops to leave Hungary, proclaiming, "If we believe in our own power, we are able to finish the communist dictatorship." Reflecting on this moment a decade later, Orban claimed he had "exposed everyone's silent desire for free elections, and an independent and democratic Hungary".
Now, 35 years later, Orban’s 14-year rule has dismantled the democratic institutions he sought to create. The European Parliament labels Hungary a "hybrid regime of electoral autocracy," citing concerns over press freedom, judicial independence, and academic freedom.
This democratic backsliding has placed him on the opposite side of history of old friends like Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Once united against Soviet rule, pushing brighter futures for their countries, they now embody opposite visions for Europe’s future.
Orban is courting Poland's Law and Justice Party — which Tusk ousted in a pivotal election for Polish democracy last year — for his new right-wing alliance.
Under Law and Justice, Poland saw 137 billion euros in E.U. funds frozen over judicial reforms deemed to undermine the rule of law. Tusk's victory and subsequent policy reversals led to the release of these funds.
It’s about the money
Hungary's obstructionism stems largely from E.U. efforts to hold the country accountable for rule of law violations. The bloc froze over 6 billion euros in funding for Hungary, citing concerns over judicial independence, press freedom, corruption, LGBTQ rights, and the treatment of asylum seekers.
In June, the Court of Justice of the European Union took the unprecedented step of fining Hungary 200 million euros, plus 1 million euros per day, for violating E.U. refugee laws. The court called Hungary's failure to protect asylum seekers' rights an "unprecedented" breach of E.U. law.
The E.U. has refused Orban's trade of halting obstruction on Ukraine in exchange for unfreezing the funds for its breaches of E.U. law; Hungary could permanently lose 1 billion euros in frozen funds by the end of the year.
Despite these tensions, Hungary remains one of the largest beneficiaries of E.U. funding. In 2021, it ranked third behind only Poland and Greece, receiving over 4.1 billion euros net from its E.U. contributions.
Orban and his allies personally benefit from EU funding, particularly through agricultural subsidies. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, a member of Orban's new "Patriots for Europe" party, received almost 40 million euros in 2019 from the Common Agricultural Program, or CAP.
In former Soviet countries, leaders like Orban and Babis exploited post-communist land privatization, selling state-owned farmland to political allies. This concentration of land ownership allows them to capitalize on CAP subsidies, funnelling millions in EU funds to their networks.
