Blurring lines between Orbán's "peace mission" and EU presidency condemned by all but one member state

25 out of 26 EU governments condemned the way Viktor Orbán's "peace mission" was conflated with the Hungarian EU presidency, Népszava, Euractiv and Szabad Európa reported. Member states' permanent representatives in the Council discussed the issue on Wednesday.

Orbán visited Ukraine a few days after taking over the presidency, after which he also went to Russia, the meeting of the Turkic Council in Nagorno-Karabakh and then on to China. On several occasions, he posted photos of his trips with the logo of the Hungarian EU presidency, while during their press conference in Moscow, Vladimir Putin said that he believed Orbán was there representing the EU presidency, a claim the Hungarian prime minister did not refute on the spot. Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó blurred the line between the EU presidency and the "peace mission", with statements such as: "The first week of the Hungarian EU presidency is over, and it should now be clear to everyone that this will be a peace mission for the next six months"

Members of the Hungarian government can go wherever they want and negotiate bilaterally with whomever they like, but the rotating presidency is in no way authorized to represent the EU in matters of foreign policy, the President of the EU Council and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy have both pointed out.

25 out of 26 ambassadors are dissatisfied or angry

According to the sources of Népszava and Euractiv, it was following a Polish proposal that EU ambassadors discussed the issue on Wednesday. They stand at a level below the ministers in the Council, so the rotating presidency belongs to the Hungarian government in this body as well, and it ensured that only the envoys were present at the meeting, thus preventing details from being leaked, the papers write.

Both newspapers report that the Hungarian representative argued that Viktor Orbán had negotiated strictly on a bilateral basis, and that his meetings were aimed at trying to find out the feasibility conditions for a ceasefire.

All the senior diplomats, except for the Slovak ambassador made it clear that they did not consider the explanation credible, because the meetings took place within a few days of the start of the Hungarian Council presidency, the government used the Hungarian presidency logo in its reports and Russian President Vladimir Putin made a point of mentioning that Hungary was the country currently holding the presidency. The ambassadors believe that the Hungarians clearly and deliberately blurred the line between the bilateral and a presidency visit.

As they told Euractiv:

25 of the 26 ambassadors "expressed widespread dissatisfaction or anger at the way the Hungarian presidency has started".

A diplomat also told Politico that the envoys discussed the timing and sequence of the meetings, the use of the presidency hashtag and Putin's reaction. "The lines were clearly and deliberately blurred", and Orbán also went against the "letter and spirit" of the European Council's conclusions, "thereby harming the unity of the EU". In the European Council, which is similar to the Council of the EU but functions as a separate institution, it is not the ministers but the heads of state and government who sit together, and their conclusions are reached unanimously, which means that Viktor Orbán had to have agreed to them too.

“It took nine days for the Hungarian presidency to lose what little confidence there was left”

– another diplomat said, describing the situation.

FT: The Council's legal service says Orbán's trip to Moscow violated EU treaties

At the meeting, the Council's legal service confirmed that the rotating presidency can only have a limited role in the EU's foreign representation, Politico reports. According to a Financial Times article, spotted by Portfolio, the legal service saw the case as a breach of the EU's founding treaties (i.e. the EU's quasi-constitution). The documents forbid any action that could jeopardise the attainment of the Union's objectives, and Orbán has also breached the requirement according to which all members must conduct foreign policy in a spirit of loyalty and mutual solidarity, the paper writes.

The principle of sincere cooperation – or loyal cooperation as it is officialy used – is a principle that was also stressed by Hungarian EU Affairs Minister János Bóka at the presentation of the presidency's programme. It is enshrined in one of the EU's founding treaties and has previously been the legal basis for lawsuits at the EU Court of Justice, for example against the Hungarian government in February 2023. Eric Mamer, the European Commission's chief spokesperson, warned last week, when asked about the Hungarian government's loyal cooperation in light of the Moscow trip, that they all operate "under the supervision of the Court of Justice of the European Union".

No specific steps taken by member states so far

On the other hand, Népszava and Politico have confirmed what Hungarian EU Affairs Minister János Bóka said on Wednesday: once the debate concluded, no country's representative proposed ending or shortening the presidency. The decision on the duration of the presidencies is taken by the Council itself, so in principle it is possible that the beginning of the next-in-line Polish presidency might be brought forward.

“The reality is that the options are limited”

– an EU official told Politico, adding that at some point it would have been possible to change or shorten the order of presidencies, but that this could be legally problematic now that it is already under way. "He's smart," he said of Orbán, "he knows exactly how far he can go without risking an immediate backlash". Former foreign minister of Luxembourg, Jean Asselborn said, also arguing that such a move would fail in the EU court, and that other member states might be wary of setting such a precedent.

Two diplomats said that several ambassadors had floated "practical consequences". Informal meetings of the Council are usually held in the country holding the presidency, and the first such meeting in Budapest was attended by conspicuously few ministers. According to Politico, several ambassadors have suggested boycotting the informal meeting of foreign ministers at the end of August, but such meetings do not involve any decision-making, so it is rather symbolic if member states are represented at a lower level or not at all. Speaking at his press conference, Bóka said that there had been no indication from any government that they would not send ministers to the meeting.

EP contemplates its course of action

Euractiv understands that the rotating presidency will also be discussed at the European Parliament's Conference of Presidents, a body made up of the leaders of political groups. MEPs will meet next week for the first time since the body was elected in June. The Council of Ministers normally has to negotiate legislation with the EP and it needs to be agreed by both bodies. It will be a long time before the EP will be able to do this, as, for example, the parliamentary rapporteurs responsible for a piece of legislation will need to be appointed first.

The Liberals told Euractiv that boycotting the presidency has been on the table since the Kyiv trip, but the paper said it was still uncertain what steps would be taken.

As usual, the presidency will present its programme at the first meeting following the inaugural session, but Viktor Orbán's speech is almost certain to be delivered in September at the earliest, given the busy programme of the new body.

The EP questioned whether the Hungarian government would be suitable for the presidency on two separate occasions ahead of the elections, but did not go as far as boycotting cooperation altogether.