A collection of 353 posts
Slovakia and Hungary have vehemently criticised Ukraine’s recent decision to halt the transit of Russian Lukoil oil to Hungary, with Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto describing it as “incomprehensible and unacceptable”. These sanctions prevent Lukoil from renting the Druzhba (Friendship) pipeline for transit purposes. As approximately 70% of the
Several CEE countries including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland will only send officials to the meetings being arranged in Budapest to mark Hungary’s EU six-month stint at the rotating presidency this month. Discussions are ongoing in several other countries. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has received a lot of
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was accused of mission creep by the international community after he opened his first week hosting the six-month EU rotating presidency with unannounced trips to Kyiv, Moscow and Beijing. Orban’s final destination after a busy week was Washington DC, for the long-planned NATO summit
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico on Friday 5 July gave his first public appearance since being seriously injured in an assassination attempt. Fico was shot by Juraj Cintula, a 71-year-old writer and political activist after a government meeting in Handlova on 15 May, since when he has had two operations.
The EU formally opened accession negotiations with Moldova and Ukraine on 25 June. The agreement of the EU’s 27 members was secured the previous week, despite efforts from Hungary to block the move. “These are truly historic moments. Ukraine is and will always be part of a united Europe,
Romania reported the highest inflation rate in May, of 5.8%, driven by significant increases in housing and utilities prices, according to the latest data from the EU’s official statistics agency Eurostat. Croatia experienced the second highest inflation in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), of 4.3%, driven primarily
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Austria’s Freedom Party FPO leader Herbert Kickl and ANO party leader and former Czech prime minister Andrej Babis declared a “new era” as they announced a European Parliament political alliance named Patriots for Europe at a joint press conference in Vienna on Sunday, 30
Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is becoming increasingly vital to the EU’s manufacturing landscape, the German Marshall Fund of the United States writes in a new report entitled “Rethinking Industrial Policy for Central and Eastern Europe”. Current industrial policies in the EU are pivoting towards high-tech, capital-intensive industries, as
Hungary will take over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union on Monday, 1 July with the slogan “Make Europe Great Again,” a nod to the populist and nationalist politics of Donald Trump, who will run for US president again in November, during Hungary’s own tenure.
Hungary will not be obliged to participate in military actions outside its territory or send money or troops to Ukraine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said after he met NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Budapest on Wednesday, 12 June, ahead of the treaty organisation’s Washington Summit next month.
The European Commission (EC) published a draft package on battery electric vehicles (BEVs) imported from China, including tariffs of between 17.4% and 38.1% on manufacturers, in addition to the 10% they already pay, on Wednesday, 12 June. The EC wrote that it has “provisionally concluded that the battery
Budapest Mayor Gergely Karacsony retained his post at last Sunday’s election, the Hungarian National Election Committee (NVB) confirmed on Friday evening after a recount of invalid votes. Last weekend the Hungarian capital’s liberal incumbent mayor received 371,466 votes, just ahead of LMP-Greens candidate and transport expert David
One-third of the EU-27 member states held local or national elections in tandem with the European Parliament ballot on June 6-9. Of these, three were countries in Central and Eastern Europe: Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania. Romania’s June 9 local elections saw 41 county council president and 3,176 mayor
Hungary’s state-owned MVM Group has signed an agreement with Azerbaijan to acquire a 5% stake in the Shah Deniz natural gas field. The acquisition will propel Hungary’s gas security into a “new dimension,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said at a joint press conference in Baku with Azerbaijani
Pro-European centrist parties performed well in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) at the European Parliament (EP) elections held from 6-9 June, in contrast to elsewhere on the continent, where far-right parties surged. Tusk consolidates lead in Poland In Poland, the Civic Coalition (KO), led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, gained