Latest news with #Tisza
Budapest Times
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Budapest Times
Orbán: Tisza Party approves of EU's Migration Pact
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said the opposition Tisza Party approves of the European Union's Migration Pact, which would mean that 'Brussels decides who can enter Hungary'. Speaking in the Fight Hour programme broadcast online on Monday morning, PM Orbán recalled Tisza leader Peter Magyar 'sitting in the front line clapping … in support of the Hungarian way' during the prime minister's public appearances only about a year and a half ago, and now, leading an opposition party 'he advocates a different path'. PM Orbán insisted that these days, a prerequisite for 'a European politician striving for compromise with the European Commission' was to adopt the Migration Pact. 'This is what Tisza says, but you need a good ear to understand,' the prime minister said. Implementing the Migration Pact would mean 'building a refugee camp for tens of thousands', he said, adding that 'Hungary has been imposed that obligation, but the country does not comply'. The Pact would also involve 'accepting that if many migrants arrive in Europe, Brussels would decide how many should come to Hungary.' 'The Migration Pact would mean the end for Hungary,' PM Orbán said.
The Diplomat
2 days ago
- Business
- The Diplomat
Polling Shows Central Europeans Remain Skeptical of China
A look into public opinion results provides an interesting complement to government-level dynamics in four nations' respective bilateral relations with Beijing. The countries of the Visegrad Four (V4) – Czechia, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia – have had divergent trajectories in their relations with Beijing over the past decade. In Czechia, the honeymoon period of relations under the leadership of Czech Social Democrats and President Milos Zeman in the mid-2010s gave way to a rift in the relationship, marked by scandals related to China's interference, unmet economic promises and Czech active engagement in developing ties with Taiwan. Meanwhile, Hungary has doubled down on the China-friendly course under Prime Minister Viktor Orban, making Hungary the leading recipient of Chinese investment in Europe for the past two consecutive years. Slovakia, under Prime Minister Robert Fico since 2023, seems to have tried to emulate Orbán's apparent success in courting Chinese investment by leaning closer to China on political issues, inking a strategic partnership with Beijing last year. Poland has charted a largely pragmatic course on China, irrespective of the government in power. A look into public opinion results, based on the recent large-scale polling by Central European Institute of Asian Studies, provides an interesting complement to government-level dynamics in the respective bilateral relations with Beijing. Overall, Central Europeans remain skeptical of China. The Czechs are the most negative, with 59.3 percent of respondents viewing China unfavorably and only 20.8 percent favorably. Hungarians, despite the cozy relationship of the Orban government with Beijing, are also largely negative toward China, together with the Poles. While Slovaks are overall also negative toward China, they have the highest proportion of positive views of China in the V4, at 33.6 percent, and the lowest share of negative views, at 39.3 percent. A deeper dive into perceptions of China by political preference provides another layer to the picture. In Hungary, there is a large gulf in perceptions of China between the supporters of the governing Fidesz party and its leading opponent, Tisza. Among supporters of Fidesz, China is viewed positively by 47.5 percent respondents and negatively by 27.8 percent, while for Tisza, it is 24.6 percent and 58.1 percent percent, respectively (the rest expressed neutral views). Similarly polarized views can be seen in Slovakia, with striking differences in perceptions of China between the supporters of the ruling Smer-SD party and the leading Progressive Slovakia opposition party. Meanwhile, while China is seen relatively more positively by the voters of ANO in Czechia – as opposed to the voters of the current China-skeptical coalition led by Spolu since 2021 – negative views of China still dominate even among ANO voters. Finally, in Poland, views of China are comparatively less polarized between KO, the leading party of the current coalition, and PiS, the major opposition party, which is mirrored in the relative continuity of Warsaw's China policy. The overall picture shows that conservative voters tend to view China more positively than liberals in Central Europe – an interesting difference when compared to the United States. Meanwhile, negative views of China are more prevalent among the more educated groups of the population. Among the different age groups, the picture is not homogeneous across the V4. While in Czechia and Hungary, the youngest people, aged 18-24, have the most negative view of China, it is the opposite in Slovakia and Poland. While we cannot assume a direct relationship between the views of the voter base and political parties' actual policies, the results do offer some hints about what we could expect should the governments change. Czechia is going into elections this October and Andrej Babis' ANO looks poised to form a new government. The negative perception of China among ANO voters does not imply that the new government would have the political capital to return to the honeymoon era of relations a decade ago. This does not preclude, however, a more 'pragmatic' approach to China, which ANO has been talking about in the opposition. Hungary will hold elections next year, and Orban's power seems to be, for the first time, in real jeopardy. Tisza has been outperforming Fidesz in the polls, threatening Orban's hold on power. If there is indeed a change in the government, Budapest's alignment with China may be under threat. Fidesz's association with China, and the related issues that have sparked local controversy, might be partly to blame. The polling shows that Hungarians have the most negative perceptions of Chinese investments in the V4, despite, or perhaps because Hungary hosts the largest amount of Chinese capital in the region. Moreover, 58.4 percent of Hungarians agree that Chinese investment brings environmental problems to the country, while 56.3 percent see Chinese investment as increasing corruption in Hungary. The polling thus shows the need to look beyond official policies to understand the dynamics of relations with China and anticipate potential recalibrations on the horizon.
Budapest Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Budapest Times
Deputy PM: Tisza Party is an empty vessel bereft of ideas
Zsolt Semjén said the Tisza Party was incapable of saying anything meaningful about any relevant issue. Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén said the opposition Tisza Party is an empty vessel bereft of ideas, and all it can do is hurl hatred and slander at Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. During a podium discussion at the 34th Balvanyosi Summer Free University and Student Camp in Baile Tusnad (Tusnadfurdo) on Thursday, Deputy PM Semjén said the Tisza Party was incapable of saying anything meaningful about any relevant issue. 'They don't have party experts, which is why they're not setting up a shadow government,' he said, adding that Tisza could not name their candidates for Hungary's 106 individual constituencies 'because they don't have 106 people' available as candidates. He said the 2026 general election would be won by parties that win 60 individual electoral districts and do well on national party lists, 'especially if the Hungarians in Transylvania, too, support them'. Commenting on Hungarian-Romanian bilateral relations, he said much closer cooperation should be maintained between the two countries, which would serve the interests of both Hungary and Romania and therefore the interests of Transylvanian Hungarians, too. President of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania, Hunor Kelemen, told the podium discussion that it was a fundamental interest of Transylvanian Hungarians to strengthen bilateral relations and make dialogue permanent. He said he had attended the informal meeting of Orbán and Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan on Wednesday evening. He added that the two prime ministers had immediately found a common wavelength and had been able to consult about important issues. The nearly two-hour meeting was characterised by mutual respect and sincere dialogue, he said.
Euractiv
4 days ago
- Business
- Euractiv
Hungary's Orban says he will not back EU budget unless funds released
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán threatened on Saturday to torpedo the European Union's new seven-year budget unless Brussels unlocks all suspended EU funds. The nationalist leader has for years clashed with Brussels over issues including migration, LGBTQ rights, and what critics see as eroding democracy in Hungary. The EU has suspended billions of euros earmarked for Hungary while a rule-of-law dispute drags on. "The approval of the new seven-year budget requires unanimity and until we get the remaining (frozen) funds, there won't be a new EU budget either," Orbán said in a speech at a summer university in the Romanian town of Baile Tusnad. The European Commission has proposed a €2 trillion EU budget for 2028-2034, with a focus on economic competitiveness and defence. Orbán also criticised the EU for supporting Ukraine and accused Brussels of planning to install a "pro-Ukraine and pro-Brussels government" in Hungary at next year's vote. He also accused EU leaders of risking a trade war with US President Donald Trump's administration that Europe "cannot win." "The current leadership of the EU will always be the last to sign deals with the United States and always the worst deals," Orbán added, urging a change in the bloc's leadership. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will meet Trump on Sunday in Scotland in search of a trade deal. Orbán, who has dominated the past four national elections, faces a tough new opposition challenger Peter Maygar. His centre-right Tisza party has a firm lead over the ruling Fidesz in most polls at a time of economic stagnation. Magyar told a rally on Saturday that Hungary must be firmly anchored in the EU and NATO military alliance, and promised to secure all suspended EU funds if his party wins in 2026. "Hungary is an EU member and our relations as allies cannot be built on a political style of putting a spoke in the wheel," Magyar said, adding that while Tisza cannot support the proposed EU budget in its current form, it would be open to negotiations. "We need to make a clear and firm decision that our place has been and will be in Europe," Magyar said, criticising Orbán's close relations with Russia. (de)
Reuters
16-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Main challenger to Hungary's Orban begins campaign tour on a canoe
TOKAJ, Hungary, July 16 (Reuters) - Hungary's main opposition leader Peter Magyar set off on a campaign tour in a canoe on Wednesday saying his Tisza party could go it alone without needing allies to defeat nationalist Prime Minister's Viktor Orban in the 2026 election. Magyar's centre-right party has a firm lead over the ruling Fidesz in most polls and poses the biggest political challenge to Orban in his 15-year rule at a time when the Hungarian leader is struggling to boost an inflation-hit economy. Speaking in the eastern town of Tokaj before an 80-day tour of the countryside, Magyar said Hungary was in a downward spiral with the economy stagnating and public services crumbling. He is promising a "Hungarian New Deal" to revive the economy with massive investment, EU funds and more predictable policies if his party wins next year. "Tisza will sign an alliance, a coalition with Hungarian people ... we will not be signing some kinds of behind-the-doors deals," Magyar told reporters beside the Tisza river. The energetic 44-year-old lawyer and former member of Orban's circles burst into Hungarian politics early last year. He cited polls showing Tisza was on course for a convincing win in 2026 by going alone. No date is yet set for the vote. Orban said in a Magyar Nemzet podcast earlier this week that unlike his Fidesz, Tisza was a "digital political movement" and not an established party, and he was calm about the election as his government's performance spoke for itself. Magyar will tour small villages and towns, where Fidesz has been strongest in the past four elections which Orban swept with landslides. From Tokaj, he paddled off in a canoe towards the village of Tiszaladany and then Tiszalok later on Wednesday. Orban is expected to deliver a keynote speech on July 26 as an informal election campaign gathers speed even without a date. The government launched massive tax cuts and a large-scale subsidized housing programme in recent weeks.
