Brussels is trying to blackmail Hungary over Ukraine's EU accession – Gulyás

The Hungarian government's regular, weekly press briefing was held on Thursday by Gergely Gulyás, Minister of the Prime Minister's Office, and Government Spokesperson Alexandra Szentkirályi. They spoke about current Hungarian domestic affairs, and updated the press about the government's most recent and planned decisions.

It doesn’t seem important to the Swedes

Commenting on President Katalin Novák's recent statement that "Hungary will not be the last to approve Sweden's accession to NATO", Gulyás said that a decision on the issue would be taken when Parliament wishes to do so. He said that it doesn't currently seem to be important to the Swedes anyways, and "as long as it's not important to the Swedes, it's not important to us". It was not clear what led him to this conclusion.

The Soros family is behind the war, because they are the biggest supporters of the war

Origo asked the Minister for his opinion on Alex Soros' recent talks in Brussels, where the situation in Ukraine was also discussed. Gulyás said that he was not surprised by the news, since "the Soros family is the biggest supporter of the war". He added that the Hungarian government believes that Europe should have its own strategy with regard to Ukraine instead of following the Soros' example.

The Hungarian government is being blackmailed over Ukraine's EU accession

According to Magyar Nemzet, there have been reports in the German press claiming that Hungary could receive the withheld EU funds by the end of the year. Gulyás has no such information, and said that Brussels is unsuccessfully trying to blackmail the Hungarian government. Without mentioning any specifics or evidence, he suggested that the EU is withholding funds from Hungary over Ukraine's potential accession to the EU. He also said that the Hungarian government doesn't support the launch of accession talks with Ukraine.

Their position is that the currently ongoing EU accession negotiations should be completed first. Gulyás said that Ukraine does not meet the necessary conditions. It did not meet them before the war and has made no progress since it started. The Hungarian government would offer Ukraine a privileged partnership instead, but sees no way or possibility for launching accession talks, he said. Referring to the aid provided for the war-torn country, Gulyás said that the EU needs a new strategy for Ukraine. The Hungarian government still does not support a joint loan, they believe that another solution is needed.

A sober thinker

According to the Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, Robert Fico's recent statement that they will no longer be supplying weapons to Ukraine could be a sign of the strengthening of Slovak-Hungarian relations within the V4. But the government is very pleased about having gained a partner who is "thinking soberly" about migration.