AFP UK
Top EU officials took turns assailing Hungary's Viktor Orban Wednesday over democratic backsliding and his Russia-friendly stance on Ukraine, as the nationalist leader delivered a defiant address to the bloc's parliament.As President Vladimir Putin's closest ally within the European Union, Orban's government is at loggerheads with its partners on a host of issues -- from stalling aid for Kyiv, to what the bloc sees as weakening the rule of law at home.In Strasbourg to present the "priorities" of Hungary's norm-defying EU presidency, Orban opened by depicting a continent in turmoil. With the Ukraine war on its doorstep and an acute "migration crisis", he argued "the European Union needs to change".Lawmakers listened respectfully at first -- with occasional applause from sympathetic members -- but a rowdy rendition of the anti-fascist anthem "Bella Ciao" rang out as Orban finished. Parliament president Roberta Metsola called them to order. "This is not Eurovision," she told them.From then on the three-and-a-half hour session became a standoff between the bulk of EU lawmakers denouncing Orban's "autocratic rule" -- and a hard-right minority who joined him in rejecting the accusations as "absurd".One by one Orban's critics let fly at the Hungarian leader. The message from Green co-leader Terry Reintke summed it up: "You are not welcome here," she told him.Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, speaking right after the Hungarian premier, denounced Budapest's hampering of Western efforts to arm Ukraine against Moscow's offensive."There is only one path to achieve a just peace for Ukraine and for Europe, we must continue to empower Ukraine's resistance with political, financial and military support," she said.- 'Propaganda show' -When Hungary assumed the EU's rotating six-month presidency in July, Orban went off script: embarking on an unsanctioned Ukraine "peace mission" to Kyiv, Moscow and Beijing that sparked fury in Brussels.Von der Leyen targeted Orban's eagerness to push for an early peace deal with Russia -- assailing those "who blame this war... not on Putin's lust for power, but on Ukraine's thirst for freedom".Speaking next, the leader of the conservative European People's Party Manfred Weber slammed Orban's trips as "a big propaganda show for the autocrats."Orban's rogue diplomacy prompted von der Leyen to order a de facto boycott of a string of meetings organised by Hungary's presidency, and his parliament address was twice delayed.The commission chief skewered Orban's tough talk on migration -- accusing his government of "throwing problems over your neighbour's fence". She described a Hungarian visa scheme for Russian nationals as "a back door for foreign interference".Dutch lawmaker Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy of the centrist Renew party depicted Orban as a character in a "bad movie" -- a "Mini-Me" to Putin, or former US president Donald Trump -- "who looks, talks and acts exactly like Dr Evil, but just sits on his lap".Hungarian opposition-leader-turned-MEP Peter Magyar lamented that Hungary under Orban's rule "has gone from a bright star to what is officially the poorest and most corrupt country in the European Union".- 'Political weapon' -Given a right of reply, Orban accused the EU chief of using the commission's power as a "political weapon" to attack Budapest. A Hungarian-led new group in the EU parliament, the Patriots for Europe, was being unfairly denied positions of authority, he said."We are never going to accept that European unity means that you tell us what to do and that we should keep quiet," he said.Patriots member Jorge Buxade Villalba rallied to Orban's defence, calling his speech "a breath of fresh air in this parliament".Since returning to lead his country in 2010, Orban has moved to curb civil rights and tighten his grip on power, repeatedly clashing with Brussels over rule-of-law concerns that led to the freezing of billions of euros of EU funds.But Orban has argued that hard-right electoral gains from Italy to the Netherlands and Austria -- and the rising influence of his Patriots -- show the political climate in Europe is slowly but surely shifting in his favour.And he may take comfort from the closing scene in the parliament -- where boos dominated, but Orban also received a standing ovation from the quarter of the hemicycle that has been controlled by the far right since June's EU elections.ec/raz/jj
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