Fidesz: Ukraine ‘has not met conditions’ to start EU accession talks

The European Union should offer Ukraine a privileged partnership for now but accession talks should not be on the table, the head of the prime minister’s office said on Thursday.

Gergely Gulyás told a government press conference that Hungary stood in solidarity with Ukraine and the country extended significant financial and humanitarian support. “But this doesn’t change the fact that Ukraine has failed to fulfil the conditions to start EU accession talks,” he added.

He cited issues concerning national minorities and corruption, referring to decisions that had disadvantaged ethnic Hungarians living in Ukraine.

“We must state our agreement with former EU commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker who said that Ukraine’s accession would be a big mistake,” he said, adding that Juncker believed that “Ukraine is totally corrupt and not ready for EU membership.”

Gulyás said that Hungary’s position concerning EU enlargement had been clear for a long time: ongoing enlargement procedures should be implemented first, he said.

Concerning EU support for Ukraine, Gulyás said taking out a joint loan would be unnecessary.

He said joint borrowing had been agreed on as a “one-off” when the recovery fund was decided on, adding that the government had not supported joint borrowing at the time but adopted a parliamentary resolution in support with the caveat that joint borrowing was a “one-off, non-repeatable instrument”.

Support for Ukraine must be found in a way that “does not deprive the next European Parliament and European Commission of the opportunity to take meaningful decisions on these issues without resorting to joint borrowing.”

Gulyás said the EU’s strategy on Ukraine had “failed” and a strategic review was needed.

A new public survey would be a good way of allowing Hungarian voters to give their views on supporting Ukraine, its EU membership, arms shipments and grain deliveries, he said.

Meanwhile, Gulyás said that inflation in Hungary would be pushed into the single digits by the end of November. The Central Statistical Office will have compiled October’s inflation data by Friday afternoon, which is expected to be around 10 percent, he said. Inflation will fall further in December and is expected to be just over 7 percent by year-end, he said.

Inflation, he said, had been “the greatest opponent” in the recent period, adding that the government would be able to meet its previous commitment to depress inflation to single digits in the promised timeframe.

OECD data published this week show that real wages in Hungary grew the most in the second quarter of 2023, exceeding inflation in August and September, he noted.

He said a significant increase in Hungary’s two standardised minimum wages will be implemented at the start of next year. “Even the most pessimistic calculation indicates an increase above the rate of inflation, and the hikes will cover both the state and the non-state sector,” Gulyás said. “2024 will be the year of wage increases and economic growth,” he said, adding that Hungary’s economy was forecast to grow at the fastest pace in the region.

Regarding migration, he said that according to intelligence reports, migrants were becoming increasingly aggressive at the southern border and border patrol officers often faced life-threatening situations. EU politicians’ statements on the issue “increasingly point in the direction of common sense”, while the EU was “still trying” to render border protection “impossible legally and physically”, he said.

“A prime example is ongoing court proceedings against Hungary because of its effective border protection, and Brussels probably wants to make Hungary pay a daily penalty for stopping migrants at the border,” he said.

The government found such attacks “unacceptable”, he said, adding there was a need for change in approach at the level of the EU and between member states, Gulyás added.

Gulyás said a decision was made at the cabinet meeting on Wednesday to tighten the immigration law according to the guiding principle that “Hungary belongs to Hungarians”. The bill would regulate the legal grounds that can be used to qualify for residence and specific period of time allowed, with a complete ban on extensions.

It also allows for immediate deportation should migrants break “the basic rules of community coexistence or the law”, he said.

These rules would also apply to foreign guest workers, who, otherwise, would only get a job in Hungary if no Hungarian employee was available to take it, he said.

Gulyás said the rules would be worked out in such a way as to render it impossible for there to be a greater number of guest workers in Hungary than vacant positions.