Péter Magyar: “We Have Reached A Historical Turning Point”

The Prime Minister spoke in German at the 17th State of Europe event organized by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation

“The international situation has not been as complicated and dangerous since World War II as it is now,” MTI quoted Prime Minister Péter Magyar as saying in a speech at an event in the German capital on Monday evening to mark the 37th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

“Today we have reached a historic turning point again, whether we like it or not,” the Hungarian Prime Minister emphasized.

“The continent that experienced the greatest era of peace and prosperity in its history in the eight decades following the war is now being shaken to its foundations,” Péter Magyar assessed. “The rivalry of great powers, wars, technological dependencies and the transformation of the world order are simultaneously affecting Europe, while our own social, economic and demographic problems have accumulated, and the unresolved migration problems for years have also weakened trust in each other,” he added.

“And Europe’s political leadership has behaved for a long time as if warnings were part of the solution in themselves, they have formulated great reports, but the necessary measures have been repeatedly missed,” he drew attention.

The Prime Minister’s speech in Berlin was broadcast via simultaneous interpretation on Péter Magyar’s own social media page.

Péter Magyar also highlighted, using the example of the Paks nuclear power plant, that the consequences of climate change have already become part of our everyday lives in Europe. “We are faced with increasingly severe droughts, receding rivers, extreme floods, and as the Hungarian example shows, water shortages are already endangering our energy supply. Europe must raise the issue of water to a strategic priority on par with energy security and competitiveness,” he drew attention. “We need joint European action, preserving our water resources, conserving water and adapting to increasingly extreme weather. In the coming decades, Europe’s economic strength and the quality of life of its citizens will depend on how responsibly we manage water,” he added.

The Prime Minister also highlighted that we can rightly be proud of our cultural heritage, but if we lose our economic, technological and geopolitical weight in the meantime, it will become increasingly difficult to protect our heritage.

“Just think of a Bavarian car factory and its Hungarian supplier, for example in Győr or Kecskemét: when one of them gets into trouble, Hungarian and German families feel it at the same time. (…) We know that Europe is increasingly lagging behind in terms of productivity and technological development. We know how dependent we are on energy, key raw materials, components and technologies produced outside our continent, and on global supply chains. The renewal of European competitiveness can no longer be postponed,” he said.

“We must protect our climate and, with equal determination, protect the livelihoods of those people and the efficiency of those companies from whom we expect the transition to be implemented. These two responsibilities go hand in hand. We cannot ask European citizens to bear unlimited burdens today in exchange for benefits expected in the distant future,” he stressed.

He stated that he was certain that the Western Balkan countries were part of Europe. “The enlargement process can only be credible and effective if those countries that have been working hard for full membership for years are finally admitted to the Union. And let us have no doubt, this is not only in their interest, but also in the economic, social and security interest of the entire Union. I am certain that we can only be credible towards ourselves and the outside world if we apply the same standards to all candidate countries,” he added.

He also drew attention to the fact that Europe does not have the political, economic and military weight needed to preserve world peace today. “However, if we become stronger, Europe can have the strength and influence to prevent the outbreak of another world war. The condition for this is that common European goals are clear and that we build a real defense capability together with NATO and our allies. Preserving peace is one of the greatest tasks of world politics today, and poorly handled social conflicts can also intensify external threats,” he said.

The Prime Minister said that the topic of migration obviously cannot be avoided when talking about Europe. “The past decade or more has resulted in a fundamental change in attitude in Europe in the fight against illegal migration. The considerations that Hungary has consistently advocated from the beginning are now also reflected in the position of the vast majority of member states,” he underlined.

“Hungary has always advocated that Member States have the right to determine their own migration policies. However, this cannot mean that the negative consequences of some Member States’ decisions are passed on to other countries. (…) Hungary still has to pay a penalty of one million euros per day based on a previous ruling by the European Court of Justice in a different legal and political environment. As the Hungarian Prime Minister, I cannot accept this. As long as I lead the government of Hungary, we will protect the external borders of my country and Europe,” Péter Magyar stated.

“We must establish a workable system that allows for the effective return of those who are not entitled to international protection and do not have a legal residence permit. If we are unable to do this, we will question the validity and credibility of our own legal system,” he said.

“We are working with my colleagues and the European Commission to find a legal solution this year that will ensure that the protection of Hungary’s southern borders is not weakened in any way and that Hungary does not have to pay the one million euro fine per day,” emphasized Péter Magyar.