EU ministers plan to boycott Hungary's foreign policy summit - Politico
Kyiv • UNN
EU foreign ministers plan to boycott Hungary's summit in Budapest by organizing their own meeting at the same time, sending a clear message that Hungary does not speak for the EU.
European Union foreign ministers intend to ignore Hungary's invitation by organizing their own foreign affairs summit in August instead of a trip to Budapest to see Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Politico reports, UNN writes.
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Hungary, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council, plans to hold a foreign affairs summit in Budapest on August 28-29. "This is a great opportunity for Orban to try to shape the bloc's foreign policy agenda and for his Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto to be in the spotlight," the newspaper notes.
"But after Orban's obstruction of aid to Ukraine and his self-proclaimed peaceful visits to Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, which he did not coordinate with 26 other EU leaders, many foreign ministers were looking for a way to avoid becoming a pillar in what they believe will be another Orban propaganda show," the newspaper writes.
It is noted that EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell is convening ministers for the "official" EU Foreign Affairs Council at the same time as Orban's summit, as reported by three EU diplomats who are directly familiar with the plan.
This comes after Hungary's envoy to the EU, Balint Odor, was harshly criticized by his colleagues at a meeting earlier this month, with Slovakia being the only country not to take the floor. "By boycotting the foreign affairs summit, ministers hope to limit Hungary's trolling," the newspaper writes.
"If there is an official EU Foreign Affairs Council organized by High Representative [Borrell] on the same day, the ministers will not be able to go to Budapest," said one diplomat.
Another added that by boycotting the meeting in Budapest, the other foreign ministers wanted to "send a clear message that Hungary does not speak for the EU.
As indicated, ministers from other EU countries are ready to show Hungary a cold shoulder. The first meeting under the Hungarian presidency, held in Budapest to discuss industrial policy, was attended by only seven ministers from other countries. The European Commissioner was not present either.
"Boycotting what was supposed to be a star-studded event for the presiding country to showcase itself on the world stage is an even greater affront designed to take the wind out of Orban's sails," the newspaper points out.
One diplomat joked that "unfortunately" their country would not be able to attend Orban's event if Borrell organized a countermeeting.
The plan has already been discussed informally with several EU countries, including France and Germany. On Wednesday, Borrell's team will present the plan to the 27 EU permanent representatives, the newspaper writes.
