Hungary wants to “make Europe great again” in its six-month term at the head of the European Council

“Make Europe great again.” This is the motto of the hungarian presidency of the European Union. The Hungarian ambassador to the EU tried to show that it is not about European version of the slogan of Donald Trump, but rather an expression of the need to make the community bloc stronger by improving its competitiveness.

On July 1, Hungary takes over the European Council

In July, Hungarians assume the rotating presidency of the European Council. The Hungarian ambassador explained to Euronews that one of the priorities will be the expansion of the geopolitical entity with the entry of some Western Balkan nation. At the same time, no accession negotiations with Ukraine are planned.

“We would very much like to continue the negotiation talks with the Western Balkan countries. This is a good opportunity. It is a right time to be able to accelerate the process of enlargement of the community block with the Western Balkan countries. They’ve been waiting for it for a long time. I think that we should try to speed up the process and organize intergovernmental talks with countries in the region, opening groups and closing chapters, as many as possible,” says Bálint Ódor, Hungary’s permanent representative to the EU.

A policy that does not consider the situation in Ukraine as a priority

Regarding the policy of the Hungarian presidency about Ukrainethe ambassador stated that “we are closely following developments” and promised that Hungary “will include all relevant aspects on the agenda However, this is not going to be a priority, he suggested. Among other issues, food security will play an important role.

Although the Orbán Government opposes many elements of the Green Deal, such as the recently approved nature restoration lawthe Magyar authorities have identified sustainable agriculture as a “key priority“. The Hungarian presidency period begins next July 1 and lasts until December 31.