Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) will receive Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán for an official visit next Thursday. The main topics of the meeting are the energy supply of the two countries in the coming winter months, as well as the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine and increased cross-border cooperation in the fight against illegal migration.
In addition, joint efforts for an EU perspective for the Western Balkans and the EU Reconstruction Fund would be important topics for discussion, according to a broadcast from the Federal Chancellery.
Orbán’s last visit to Vienna was in 2018
Orbán last made an official visit to Vienna in January 2018 and met, among others, Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) and Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache (FPÖ). Kurz was at the meeting of the Visegrád countries (V4) in Budapest in June 2018. Chancellor Christian Kern (SPÖ) paid a bilateral visit to Hungary in July 2016.
Ice Age between Hungary and the European Commission
There is currently a conflict between Hungary and the European Commission, including over the Rule of Law Mechanism, which the Commission launched in April, partly because of deficiencies in the rule of law and democracy, but also the suspicion of corruption and friendliness in public procurement in Hungary. At the end of the multi-stage process, the Commission can make a proposal to the Council of EU Member States to cut budgets for Hungary. Aid for the country amounting to 7.2 billion euros from the Corona Development Fund has already been frozen in the dispute.
Nehammer: “Good bilateral relations”
Ahead of the meeting, Chancellor Nehammer emphasized “good bilateral relations” with Hungary, in particular in relation to the fight against illegal migration and the joint commitment to an EU perspective for the Western Balkans. “This bilateral cooperation is necessary because the European asylum system no longer works. Strong protection of the EU’s external borders and effective returns are finally needed to reduce the flow of people to Europe and ensure greater security,” said Nehammer.
Over the course of the refugee crisis in 2015, Hungary erected fences on its southern borders with Serbia and Croatia and has since cracked down on illegal migration. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has condemned the country several times in recent years for its asylum policy and the treatment of refugees.
Source: Krone
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