Orbán warns against ‘United States of Europe’

Prime Minister Orbán Hungary
Budapest, 2018. március 5. Orbán Viktor miniszterelnök beszédet mond az Igazságügyi zsebtörvénytár címû kiadvány bemutatóján a Magyar Tudományos Akadémián 2018. március 5-én. A zsebtörvénytár a magyar jogrendszer megújításának legfontosabb törvényeit tartalmazza. MTI Fotó: Szigetváry Zsolt

Creating a “United States of Europe” would be equal to turning the region into a “continent for immigrants including an immigrant-destination Hungary”, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Monday.

Speaking at a book launch at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in Budapest, Orbán warned of “attempts” to curb member states’ competencies and to build a “United States of Europe”, and said that

the European Commission “has openly declared itself a political body”.

He insisted that the commission’s “giving up its impartiality” would lead to ruining cooperation within the community because it will “institutionalise double standards to benefit the bigger countries, to the detriment of smaller members”. Orbán went on to say that giving up the principle that the commission is a guardian of the treaties would “shake the foundations” of European institutions.

As an example of using double standards, Orbán said that the EU has not penalised its larger members for certain violations. He said that the commission had failed to start proceedings when France’s budget deficit was higher than required, and the only explanation the body’s head gave at the time was that “France is France”.

As another example, Orbán mentioned that the EC had launched an infringement procedure against Hungary when it sent its elderly judges to retirement as part of its judicial reform in 2011-12, but “enthusiastically hailed” a similar move in Italy as a measure to speed up court proceedings.

Orbán accused the EC of “interfering” with Hungary’s election campaign and of attacking its government “because it does not conceal its opinion on certain court rulings”, and criticised the European Parliament for “continually making aggressive, interfering calls on Hungarian judges” concerning the case of Ahmed H, a Syrian national charged with terrorism.

“The same rules should apply to all EU members,” Orbán said, adding that “Europe should again be a Europe of common sense and fairness”.

Photo: MTI

Source: MTI

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