Poland and Hungary against the EU: don’t be good for nothing

D.The meeting of the two heads of government Viktor Orbán and Mateusz Morawiecki on Thursday in Budapest obviously served to demonstrate the determination of the two “budget rebels” Hungary and Poland. Because what has been proposed so far in Brussels does not constitute a basis for the approval of the multiannual financial framework and budget for Corona aid, said the head of the Chancellery of Orbán Gergely Gulyás. This is likely to refer mainly to the proposal by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to decouple the rejection of the budget and the rule of law mechanism. Hungary and Poland could then challenge proceedings that they believe violate the Treaty before the Court of Justice of the European Communities. But it is the pairing that is the trump card of Orbán and Morawiecki.

They therefore proposed a different decoupling in a coordinated joint declaration: now it quickly adopts the budget and then at some point in the European Council discusses whether a link between the rule of law and the financial interests of the European Union should be introduced. This would mean in simple words: a ride to Santa Neverlein. Because the Council, the assembly of heads of state and government, is the body that can only deliberate unanimously. And it was already the compromise formula of the last July Council to introduce a “conditionality rule to protect the budget”, then interpreted in such a fundamentally opposite way.

Orbán: Not a cent less will go to Hungary

The two heads of government conclude this back-to-back approach with formulas of a willingness to compromise and argue with accusations: You have prepared a budget. “We remain ready to contribute to the solution, but this requires a substantial change in the mechanism currently proposed. Poland and Hungary would continue to place themselves on the basis of sincere cooperation and solidarity. This means: not only one with the Together, the two heads of government remain on an even more solid basis, which is more reminiscent of the NATO assistance clause than an EU compromise document: “Neither Poland nor Hungary will accept a proposal that seems to the other unacceptable “.

Heads of government see themselves in a position of strength when it comes to the budget and the Crown aid plate. Orbán has repeatedly assured Hungarians in interviews that they will never find themselves in economic difficulties and that not a penny less will flow to Hungary. Furthermore, Hungary is not dependent on the Corona fund, because thanks to its debt-to-GDP ratio there may still be bonds on favorable terms. Indeed, Hungary has only recently sold bonds worth € 2.5 billion at historically low rates of between 0.5 and 1.5 percent. Also in Warsaw, numerous government politicians tried to relativize the importance of EU funds for Poland, or pointed out that the economies of the old EU countries benefited incomparably more from EU enlargement than the economies of Poland and Hungary. “The Netherlands pays nearly seven billion euros into the EU budget every year and earns 84 billion from the internal market,” tweeted Maria Koc, a senator from the ruling PiS party, citing EU statistics. Orbán’s right-hand man, Gulyás, took the same line when he said that Hungary currently receives four billion euros net annually from the EU, while EU companies make six billion euros in profits every year in Hungary. So it’s a mutual benefit. “We owe no one anything for receiving EU funding. It is our money to which we are absolutely entitled, ”Gulyás said.

Internal criticism of the Morawiecki course

In Warsaw, Polish policy towards Brussels is increasingly seen as part of a government dispute. Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro said Wednesday: “You must not be neglected in the negotiations, you must be tough and represent the interests of your country.” Many countries have already threatened to veto the EU, most recently the Netherlands in July “, but no one has accused the Prime Minister of the Netherlands that this would mean the collapse of the EU”.

Regarding the statement by European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen that critics of the rule of law mechanism could turn to the European Court of Justice, Ziobro said that von der Leyen acted “in bad faith” and applied “regulations knows how to be wrong “. The word “crap” was seen as a criticism of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who appears more conciliatory in the debate. This has led to the question in the Polish media whether the Minister of Justice is now determining European politics.

Ziobro, known as Morawiecki’s opponent, leads a small party in the government camp whose separation would mean the loss of the parliamentary majority. However, former banker Morawiecki was also tough on the matter: “We are struggling to ensure that Italy or Spain, Sweden or Bulgaria are not attacked in five or seven years because someone in Brussels doesn’t want them to be on these. and not those kind of reforming their country, “he said Thursday before leaving for Budapest.

The liberal opposition accuses the government of leading the country towards a “Polexit”, a move away from the EU or its funding mechanisms. Conversely, a right-wing magazine this week ran the headline: “If You Want to Stay in the EU, Prepare for Polexit”, invoking the maxim: “If you want peace, prepare for war”.