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EU Leaders Blast Orban Over Loan Veto 03/19 06:09
European Union leaders on Thursday lashed out at Hungarian Prime Minister
Viktor Orbn, accusing him of hijacking critical aid for Ukraine and
undermining EU decision-making in an effort to win an election at home.
BRUSSELS (AP) -- European Union leaders on Thursday lashed out at Hungarian
Prime Minister Viktor Orbn, accusing him of hijacking critical aid for Ukraine
and undermining EU decision-making in an effort to win an election at home.
In a rare public tirade against a member of their ranks, leaders insisted
that Orbn must respect the 27-nation bloc's decision in December to fund
Ukraine's armed forces and war-ravaged economy for the next two years. Orbn
himself had previously approved what is seen as a critical lifeline for
war-ravaged Ukraine.
"He's using Ukraine as a weapon in his election campaigning, and it's not
good. We had a deal, and I think that he betrayed us," Finland Prime Minister
Petteri Orpo told reporters as the leaders gathered for a summit in Brussels.
Ukraine's economy is in tatters. EU officials believe it must get at least a
sizeable part of the 90-billion-euro ($103-billion) loan by the start of May.
For that to happen, work must move forward on the EU agreement within two to
three weeks.
Orbn -- who is seen as Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest ally in
Europe and is a strident nationalist admired by U.S. President Donald Trump --
is trailing in opinion polls ahead of elections on April 12. Part of his
election campaign has been to portray Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
as an existential threat to Hungary.
He has alleged that the Ukrainian leader, along with European Commission
President Ursula von der Leyen, wants to drag Hungary into Russia's war, now in
its fifth year. He has claimed that his reelection is the only guarantee of
peace and security.
Taking Hungary's leader to task
Fellow EU leaders are now taking Orbn to task, pulling the rug from under
his claims that EU institutions in Brussels are against him.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz insisted that all 27 EU member countries
must respect the decision they made together in December. "The guiding
principle of the European Union is one of loyalty and reliability," he said.
On the eve of the summit Merz had accused Orban of "setting up this blockade
in Europe now for domestic political reasons and because of an election
campaign that is being conducted there."
Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said "it's unacceptable to decide with
the leaders and then after say 'but I'm not ready to execute what I decided.'"
Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker said that if Orban is using the
election as a pretext, then "this is not a valid argument given the situation
in Ukraine, the plight of the people in Ukraine, and what we ourselves have
decided."
The standoff has highlighted important weaknesses in EU decision-making
procedures, which often require unanimous agreement among the 27 member
countries. Hungary has a population of almost 10 million, a fraction of the
bloc's 450 million people.
Energy feud
Ukraine and Hungary have been locked in an escalating feud since deliveries
of Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia were halted in January due to damage to
the Druzhba pipeline, which crosses Ukrainian territory.
Ukrainian officials blame the damage on Russian drone attacks, but Orbn
accuses Zelenskyy of deliberately holding up oil supplies. Hungary has not only
vetoed the loan package, it's also blocking a new round of EU sanctions against
Russia.
In an effort to break the deadlock, von der Leyen and European Council
President Antnio Costa offered this week to pay for repairs to the pipeline.
An EU technical team is in Kyiv awaiting security clearance to inspect the site.
But Orbn vowed to continue to block the loan as long as oil shipments to
Hungary are halted.
"What we are talking about is not politics, it is existential for Hungary.
To get the oil is existential for the Hungarians," said Orbn, who has been
Hungary's prime minister since 2010 and is seeking his fifth term. "It's not a
joke, it's not a political game. Zelenskyy should understand it."
Ahead of the meeting, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico withdrew support for
a planned summit statement on Ukraine because it did not include the pipeline
oil delivery issue, as he requested. "This is being rejected for
incomprehensible reasons. I will not vote for the conclusions on Ukraine," he
told Slovak lawmakers.
A dependency on Russian energy
The EU mostly weaned itself off Russian oil and natural gas after 2022 as
Putin used the bloc's dependence on it as leverage to undermine European
support for Ukraine. However, Hungary and Slovakia were given exemptions to
keep using Russian oil.
Their leaders say they are landlocked and have no easy access to other
suppliers, although they are currently receiving oil via an alternative route
through Croatia. However, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovi noted that
Hungary and Slovakia pay about 30% less for Russian oil.
Zelenskyy, who addressed the leaders via video link, is vehemently opposed
to allowing Russian energy to transit through Ukraine. Energy revenue has
fueled Putin's war, and Russian forces have relentlessly targeted Ukraine's
energy infrastructure throughout the conflict.
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