More provocation from Orbán in Transylvania
For years, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has used the stage of the Summer University in the Romanian, but predominantly Hungarian-speaking Băile Tușnad to give highly provocative speeches. This year his vitriol was again directed at Brussels, Washington and Warsaw. But this time Poland's Secretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski, did not beat about the bush in his response: Orbán should ask himself why he is still in the EU.
Polish-Hungarian relations in tatters
Relations between Poland and Hungary have tipped from friendship into hostility, Wprost avers.
“All that remains of our romantic brotherhood with Hungary are historical sentiments and close interpersonal ties, to which the numerous mixed marriages in both countries attest. At the political level, after the Russian attack on Ukraine, friendly relations between Kaczyński's Poland and Orbán's Hungary have shifted from Cold War iciness to open confrontation between Budapest and the Donald Tusk team.”
Dangerous for Romania too
The Hungarian prime minister's political regime must be isolated, says Spotmedia:
“According to the accusations from Warsaw, Orbán is an enemy of the EU who unscrupulously helps the Kremlin regime, which has invaded an independent state. A victory for Putin in Ukraine would give Orbán one more reason to question the Treaty of Trianon. Romania must realise it has no time to lose in establishing itself as a regional player when it comes to Nato security and strengthening its relations with Poland and the Baltic states and, to the south, with Bulgaria and Greece. This would build up a protective wall against Russia and isolate Viktor Orbán's political regime.”
Visegrád is dead
The cooperation between Warsaw and Budapest that was once underpinned by the Visegrád alliance has no future, Rzeczpospolita writes:
“For Poland, the bitter conflict with Hungary means that it will have to make strategic shifts in foreign policy. The Visegrád Group is dead, and alternatives need to be found. One of these could be the Weimar Triangle, but with a crippled government in France the effectiveness of this alliance has declined dramatically. Another idea would be to strengthen ties in the Baltic region or to bank on bilateral relations, in particular with Czech Republic or Germany.”
Warsaw reacts, Bucharest holds its tongue
The Romanian government has to come up with a clear statement, RFI România demands:
“Warsaw's instant riposte to the Budapest address is also an indirect slap in the face for Romania, the country which for years has hosted Viktor Orbán's revisionist, racist, anti-Western and pro-Russian speeches. And a country whose prime minister [Marcel Ciolacu] has no bones to pick with Viktor Orbán as long as Romania is not directly impacted. It doesn't seem as if Romania belongs to the EU. Poland's reaction stands in glaring contrast to the stubborn silence of the Bucharest officials and Ciolacu's warm welcome of Orbán.”
Flirting with Kaczyński's PiS
Népszava sees the speech as a tactical move:
“What could Orbán's motivation be, apart from his antipathy towards Tusk? ... By attacking Tusk, Orbán is in fact trying to move closer to Kaczyński's party, perhaps in the hope that sooner or later the PiS will change its mind and join the Patriots for Europe group. ... These endeavours by the Hungarian premier indicate that he and his closest allies are repeatedly banging their heads against the fact that, for all their brash and self-congratulatory statements, they are ultimately irrelevant players in Europe.”
The rift widens
Espreso recapitulates:
“The change of government in Poland and the fact that Robert Fico, who shares Orbán's views on European integration, is now in power in Slovakia, has freed Warsaw from the need to maintain its support for Budapest and vice versa. Orbán can count on Robert Fico blocking any decisive EU measures against his country. And the Polish government has virtually nothing in common with the Hungarian government, since Donald Tusk's and Viktor Orbán's views on the values of the EU and on European and Euro-Atlantic integration are diametrically opposed.”