Erdoğan's visit causes chaos in Budapest
Thousands of people took to the streets of Budapest to protest the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and show solidarity with the Kurds in northern Syria. Erdoğan met Prime Minister Viktor Orbán for talks. The large-scale security measures adopted to protect the guest of state caused traffic chaos in the city. Commentators discuss whether the whole thing was necessary.
City crippled for a handshake
Was all the fuss warranted, 444.hu asks:
“Thousands of Budapest residents had to reorganise their schedules or stand around in the cold just because Erdoğan and Viktor Orbán wanted to shake hands. That's pretty much all that happened. In any case there was no announcement at the joint press conference that justified crippling the Hungarian capital with its 1.75 million inhabitants for 24 hours. The Hungarian government probably no longer even considers the impact certain measures can have on the lives of Hungarian citizens.”
Of course the visit was important
Magyar Nemzet, which has close ties to the government, believes that there were important things to be discussed during the visit of the Turkish president:
“It should not be concealed that there are numerous questions regarding Turkey's Kurdish policy and the domestic conditions behind the intervention in Syria. These questions are being asked where they should be asked: at the negotiating table. ... Hungary also has interests in Turkey and Syria. The most pressing question for us is that the four million Syrian refugees should not become migrants moving in our direction. It's no coincidence that Hungarian foreign policy emphasises that for centuries we have lived inside a triangle formed by Berlin, Moscow and Istanbul (Ankara). We cannot afford to ignore these powers.”