EU Parliament calls to strip Hungary of voting rights in EU over Orbán's 'peace missions', reports
Photo: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (Getty Images)
MEPs demanded that Hungary be stripped of its voting rights in the EU after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's trips to Russia and China, according to Politico.
63 MEPs appealed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, and European Parliament President Roberta Metsola with a statement that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán "has already caused significant damage by exploiting and abusing the role of the Council Presidency."
On July 1, Hungary took over the rotating presidency of the EU Council from Belgium. Since then, Orbán has embarked on self-proclaimed "peace missions" to Kyiv, Moscow, Beijing, and Washington, claiming to represent the EU without authorization.
Orbán "undertook several diplomatic visits, notably to visit Putin in Russia and Xi Jinping in China, during which he intentionally misrepresented his empowerments," the lawmakers wrote, calling on parliament to respond.
"This requires real actions, such as suspending Hungary’s voting rights in the Council, since practice has shown that mere verbal condemnations of this situation have no effect," the MEPs add.
The letter, supported by MEPs from various countries and parliamentary groups, including the EPP, the EPP's Renewal, the Left, and the Greens, is the latest attempt to condemn Budapest for its misuse of the presidency. The Commission has also asked its commissioners not to attend the informal meetings of Hungarian ministers, which were announced on Monday.
Hungary's EU Presidency and Orban's "peace missions"
On July 1, Hungary, under the leadership of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, known for his pro-Russian views, began its six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union. A few days later, Orbán traveled to a number of countries on so-called "peace missions."
On July 2, he visited Kyiv, where he called on President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to cease fire, lay down his arms, and come to the negotiating table. On July 5, Orbán arrived in Moscow, where he held talks with President Putin, and then left on his "peace missions" to China.
Orbán's trips were sharply criticized by the EU leadership because they were not coordinated with Brussels. In addition, he did not have the authority to speak on behalf of the entire bloc.
In response to Orbán's actions, six EU countries announced their intention to boycott Council meetings during the Hungarian presidency. EU Foreign Ministers also plan to ignore the summit in Budapest scheduled for August.
