Europe Frustration in Brussels: EU argues over reaction to Orban trip

The question of possible retaliation for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's unarranged trips to Russia and China is dividing the EU.

At a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday, a number of participants spoke out against a proposal by EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell to react by boycotting a meeting that the current Hungarian EU presidency wants to organize in Budapest at the end of August.

Borrell, who is responsible for invitations to EU foreign ministers' meetings, now has the problem. If he does not organize the biannual meeting in Budapest, there is a risk that critical ministers will boycott the meeting.

If he reluctantly invites them to Budapest, the Hungarians are the winners. This is particularly annoying for many because Hungary was actually completely isolated with its diplomatic initiative, which was marketed as a "peace mission". Nobody supported it, according to Brussels.

Major EU countries are against boycott

Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel was the most outspoken critic of the boycott on Monday. He spoke of nonsense and called for people to travel to Budapest and clearly express their opinion to the Hungarian government. Countries such as Spain and Slovenia also expressed clear opposition to the Borrell initiative.

According to diplomats, the German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and representatives of countries such as France and Italy expressed similar views behind the scenes.

On the other side, however, were countries from north-eastern Europe such as Poland. Lithuania and Sweden had already announced days ago that they would temporarily not be sending ministers to Hungary for meetings in response to Orban's unilateral actions.

Discussion has been going on for days

Possible EU reactions to Orban's meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, China's head of state and party leader Xi Jinping and former US President Donald Trump have been discussed for days.

They are considered particularly annoying because Hungary currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council. It is feared that the impression will be created abroad that Orban is speaking on behalf of the European Union at meetings. In terms of content, the main criticism is that the trip to Putin in particular could be seen as a concession.

Orban speaks of "peace mission"

Borrell called Orban's actions at the foreign ministers' meeting "completely unacceptable" and also referred to statements made by his Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto. In a recent speech at the UN Security Council, Szijjarto gave the impression that the EU was fueling the war in Ukraine through its policies and arms deliveries.

Orban speaks of a "peace mission". The Hungarian has long held the view that the political course of the EU and NATO could lead to an expansion of the war beyond Ukraine. From Ukraine's point of view, however, negotiations are pointless as long as Russia shows no willingness to withdraw from the occupied territories.

Hungarian minister flexes his muscles

In a letter to EU Council President Charles Michel following his travels, Orban wrote that the EU should now take the initiative and hold talks with China about a possible major peace conference. At the same time, diplomatic communication with Russia, which had been suspended due to the war in Ukraine, should be resumed.

German Foreign Minister Baerbock did not address these demands at the foreign ministers' meeting. She criticized the trips as "ego trips" that had caused irritation among many actors around the world.

Szijjarto published a photo of himself at the foreign ministers' meeting, showing him in a tight white T-shirt with a well-toned upper body. He also wrote that he was traveling to Brussels with a political bulletproof vest and was prepared for a political "firefight".

He accused his counterparts of being frustrated by the failure of their own Ukraine policy. He also pointed out that there had been numerous other talks since Orban's "peace mission" - including between the US and Russian defense ministers and between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi and Trump.

SDA