Tag "Viktor Orban"
Hungarians protest encroaching Chinese Influence
Recently, Hungary’s President Orban has faced a wave of protests in response to plans to build a Chinese satellite campus at a Budapest University at the cost of $1.8 billion. The Hungarian public have objected on the grounds that the project could undercut the country’s higher education and increase the influence of China’s communist authorities in Hungary and across Europe. If the project goes ahead, there could be benefits for Sino-Hungarian relations but possibly at the cost of Hungary’s relations with its European neighbours and the stability of Orban’s premiership.
Reality of Post-Communist Transitions Risks Entrenching EU-Central Europe Divide
Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orban, and his Polish counterpart, Mateusz Morawiecki, argue that new powers handed to the European Commission, allowing the EU to withhold payments of the €750bn Covid recovery package from member states that fail to meet EU standards on the rule of law, are a politically motivated attempt to target their countries.
Hungary: Coronavirus and Orban’s Power Play
For Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban, the coronavirus pandemic is another opportunity to pursue his approach of power politics in a democracy, that is increasingly at odds with the EU’s values.
Viktor Orbán and risks of suspension from European Parliament
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party was suspended with immediate effect in March from the EPP centre-right bloc in the European Parliament. Brussels is taking a stand, but what are the risks to relations between the EU and newer member states like Hungary?
Press freedom and political risk in Central and Eastern Europe
The continuing erosion of press freedom in Central and Eastern Europe should raise alarms among business leaders that operate in the region. Growing media consolidation, autocratic critiques of journalism and prosecutions against reporters are all undermining the ability of observers to get solid business intelligence. In the absence of a free press, political risk is rising in these European markets.
Elections in Hungary point to growing rift between East and West
With the re-election of Fidesz party leader, Viktor Orbán for a third term, Hungary joins Poland and Italy in the rising tide of right-wing governments.
After Brexit, Eastern Europe remains loyal, for now
After Brexit highlighted fears over immigration, the EU needs to listen better to its citizens. While Western members face uncertainty, Eastern Europe remains loyal to the EU, for now.
What exactly is “illiberal democracy”?
How can illiberal democracy exist in the EU? Is democracy still relevant in Europe, or is Central European pioneering a new model?
Poland challenges EU values, but don’t expect sanctions
The European Union is initiating action against Warsaw’s recent breach of the rule of law. Brussels is unlikely to sanction the Polish government, but this clash reflects growing disparities between
Angela Merkel’s mixed role in Germany’s refugee crisis
Germany’s leadership role in the European refugee crisis has been widely recognised, but Chancellor Angela Merkel faces domestic pressure surrounding her policies. Germany’s response to the European refugee crisis has
