After PM’s Orbán visit to Warsaw and his uneasy talks with the Polish Prime Minister over Russia and Ukraine, a conservative columnist accuses Poland of subservience to Washington. A left-wing commentator, on the other hand, believes that Mr Orbán has lost all credibility in Poland. READ MORE
The leading left-wing daily fears that Vladimir Putin’s March visit, announced this week, is another indication of the Hungarian government’s Eastern orientation. A conservative analyst points out that Hungary needs to maintain good relations with both Germany and Russia. Another left-wing commentator suspects that PM Orbán may want to revise the 1994 Budapest Memorandum on Ukraine. READ MORE
A conservative columnist accuses Andre Goodfriend of openly siding with the anti-Fidesz opposition and interfering in Hungarian internal affairs by attending a foreign policy conference organized by the Democratic Coalition. READ MORE
The leading left-wing daily considersSenator McCain’s apparent description of PM Orbán as a “neofascist dictator” a gross exaggeration. A pro-government commentator believes that Senator McCain’s statements are confused, unfair and motivated by US economic interests.
As the Hungarian government reveals an aide memoire by the US Embassy’s document on corruption, a conservative columnist accuses the US of trying to pressure the Hungarian government in defense of American business interest. Left-wing commentators accuse the Hungarian government of closing its eyes over institutional corruption. READ MORE
A liberal columnist contends that the US is pressurizing Hungary in order to protect its own geopolitical interests. Centrist and liberal conservative commentators warn of the consequences of diplomatic isolation and call for reconciliation with the US and the EU. A liberal weekly speculates that PM Orbán is already on his way out of the EU and NATO. READ MORE
As the US bans a number of unnamed Hungarian state officials and businessmen from entering the US, left-wing and liberal columnists contend that the US wants to teach what they call the corrupt and increasingly pro-Russian Orbán government a lesson. Conservative pundits believe that the US wants to set an example and send the message that it does not tolerate any deviation from its foreign policy line or any violation of its financial interests. READ MORE
A conservative columnist contends that the proposed US-EU free trade agreement is likely to serve US geopolitical interests and may not be in line with the wishes of Europeans. A moderate commentator believes that the US is bent on increasing its formal and informal influence in Eastern Europe in order to weaken illiberal regimes which challenge its hegemony. READ MORE
Following NATO’s decision to set up rapid response force bases in Eastern Europe, left-wing commentators believe that the Orbán government will have to join the West and stand up to Russia.
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Népszabadság thinks Hungarian diplomats in the world will have a hard time explaining the policies of their government because they depart from the international consensus. Magyar Nemzet, on the other hand, suggests that Hungary has to get rid of ideological constraints and be pragmatic in her choices, but the fact that the country belongs to the Western world remains unquestionable. READ MORE