Hungary’s anti-immigrant government signaled last week that it is serious about giving migrants free one-way travel to Brussels, a measure meant to pressure the European Commission into dropping heavy fines imposed on Hungary over its restrictive asylum policies.
In June, the European Court of Justice ordered Hungary to pay a fine of 200 million euros ($216 million) for persistently breaking the bloc’s asylum rules, and an additional 1 million euros per day until it brings policies into line with EU law. The government in Budapest is delaying payment.
Asked about Hungary’s plan, commission spokeswoman Anitta Hipper said: “It is unacceptable.”
“This action, if carried out, would be in clear breach of the EU law, but also it would be in clear breach of the principle of sincere and loyal cooperation, but also of mutual trust,” Hipper told reporters. The commission has its headquarters in the Belgian capital.
“In addition, it will also undermine the security of the Schengen area as a whole,” she said, in reference to the 29-country zone where people and goods can cross borders without document checks.
The commission is in contact with the Hungarian authorities and those in any neighboring countries that the convoy might pass through should it leave.
Traveling overland, the buses would have to cross either France or Germany – which along with Luxembourg and the Netherlands surround Belgium – and possibly other EU member countries like Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia or the Czech Republic.
“We are also standing ready to use all our powers under the treaty to ensure that EU law is respected,” Hipper said. But the most effective step would certainly be for other member countries to stop the buses by reintroducing border checks.
Hipper did not elaborate on what action the commission is able to take, but it is difficult to see what kind of punishment might dissuade Hungary given that the country is already defying a court order to pay 200 million euros in fines.
On Monday, Belgium’s top migration official, Nicole de Moor, said Hungary’s threat “undermines solidarity and cooperation within the Union.” Her office said the Belgian authorities will “not provide access” to any such migrant arrivals.
Top EU officials will boycott informal meetings hosted by Hungary while the country has the EU’s rotating presidency, after Hungary’s pro-Russian Prime Minister Viktor Orban held a series of rogue meetings with foreign leaders about Ukraine that angered European partners.
The highly unusual decision to have the European Commission president and other top officials of the body boycott the meetings was made ‘’in light of recent developments marking the start of the Hungarian (EU) presidency,” commission spokesperson Eric Mamer posted Monday on X.
Hungary took over the rotating role July 1, and since then Orban has visited Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan, China, and the United States on a world tour he’s touted as “peace mission” aimed at brokering an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine. That angered many leaders in the EU, who said they had not been informed in advance of Orbán’s plans. Orban’s government is friendly with Russia and has gone against the policy of most EU countries on support for Ukraine.
Hungary’s Europe minister, Janos Boka, lashed out at the commission’s decision saying the body ‘’cannot cherry pick institutions and member states it wants to cooperate with. ‘’
The decision by the European Commission applies to informal meetings hosted by Hungary. Senior civil servants will attend instead of top officials like the European Commission president, currently Ursula von der Leyen.
Orbán’s government has gone against the policy of most EU countries by refusing to supply Kyiv with weapons to deter Russia’s invasion and by threatening to block financial assistance to the war-ravaged country.
The long-serving prime minister’s visits to Moscow and Beijing, where he held talks with leaders Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, angered his EU counterparts, who said they had not been informed in advance. They rushed to clarify that Orbán — whose country is currently filling the bloc’s six-month rotating presidency — was not acting on behalf of the EU.
In an interview with Hungarian newspaper Magyar Nemzet on Monday, Orbán’s political director said the prime minister had briefed the leaders of other EU countries “in writing about the negotiations, the experiences of the first phase of the peace mission and the Hungarian proposals.”
“If Europe wants peace and wants to have a decisive say in settling the war and ending the bloodshed, it must now work out and implement a change of direction,” said Balázs Orbán, who is not related to the premier. “A realistic assessment of the situation, realistic goals and the right timing — that’s our approach.”
Hungary’s government has long argued for an immediate ceasefire and peace negotiations in the conflict in Ukraine, but has not outlined what such moves might mean for the country’s territorial integrity and future security. It has exhibited an adversarial posture toward Ukraine while maintaining close ties to Moscow, even after its full-scale invasion in Feb. 2022.
Orbán’s critics have accused him of acting against the unity and interests of the EU and NATO, of which Hungary is a member, and of pursuing an “appeasement” strategy concerning Russia’s aggression.
Following Orbán’s unannounced trip to Moscow for talks with Putin on July 5 — the first such visit from an EU head of state or government in more than two years — von der Leyen accused him of trying to mollify the Russian leader, writing on X: “Appeasement will not stop Putin. Only unity and determination will pave the path to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine.”
