Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech during the tribute ceremony on the occasion of the National Day of Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, at the Hôtel des Invalides in Paris, on March 11, 2023. CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT / AFP
Emmanuel Macron receives Viktor Orban in Paris on Monday evening to insist on “unity of european countrieson the war in Ukraine in the face of the dissonant voice regularly heard by the Hungarian Prime Minister, as well as on theeuropean valuesand the rule of law. During a working dinner at the Élysée, the French head of state and the controversial Hungarian leader must prepare for the European Council on March 23 and 24 in Brussels. They will refer toindustrial policy, energy and migration issues“, declared the French presidency.
Orban against the tide
Viktor Orban has been sailing against the tide of his European partners on the Ukrainian file since the Russian invasion of Ukraine a year ago. He castigates theindirect warled by Europe against Russia and at the end of February again launched a new call for a ceasefire. Beyond that, the nationalist leader has repeatedly rubbed shoulders with the European Union over the fluctuating respect for the rule of law in Hungary, which Emmanuel Macron, much more Europhile, intends to raise again on Monday evening.
The Elysian dinner, more than a year after their last bilateral meeting in December 2021 in Budapest, “will be an opportunity to reaffirm the importance of European values and the unity of European countries in their support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression, in particular through the application of sanctions against Russia“Said the entourage of the French president. The latter will alsoreiterate the need for Hungary to ratify Finland’s and Sweden’s NATO membership“.
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Ambiguous position
Of the 30 members of the Atlantic Alliance, only Turkey and Hungary have yet to ratify these two new candidacies submitted in the midst of the war in Ukraine. A French diplomatic source said on Monday “quite confidentas to the parliamentary process undertaken on the Hungarian side. Since the start of the conflict in February 2022, Budapest, very dependent on Russian hydrocarbon imports, has maintained an ambiguous position, refraining from criticizing the Russian president.
Viktor Orban, who had close ties with Vladimir Putin before the war, refuses to send weapons to kyiv and castigates the European sanctions aimed at Moscow, even if he voted for them. Since his return to power in 2010, the nationalist leader has gradually brought checks and balances to heel, whether in the media or the judiciary, regularly drawing criticism from the European Union. The EU is also blocking some 12 billion euros in funds destined for Budapest pending anti-corruption reforms.