All posts tagged: Rule of Law

Hungary’s Magyar threatens constitutional amendment if Orban-appointed president refuses to resign

Hungary’s Magyar threatens constitutional amendment if Orban-appointed president refuses to resign

Published by Sam Flores

Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar said on Monday his government would launch legal proceedings to dismiss President Tamas Sulyok, an appointee of the previous nationalist administration, ​if he ‌sticks by his refusal to resign. Magyar’s centre-right Tisza party ousted Viktor Orban as prime minister in an April election and pledged to remove several figures appointed by Orban to key public positions over the ‌past 16 years, including the largely ceremonial head of state. Read moreHungarian election-winner Magyar says country ‘liberated’, Orban concedes defeat Magyar has repeatedly ⁠called on Sulyok – elected in early 2024 by lawmakers from Orban’s Fidesz party – to step down, accusing him of failing to represent national unity on major issues ​and of serving the interests of Orban and his government. Sulyok ‌has consistently refused to resign. “I have told the president that if he maintains his stance and does not resign, I will inform … Tisza’s lawmakers about our legislative proposals today and we will immediately ‌start the necessary procedures,” Magyar said after meeting Sulyok. “Hungary does not belong to Tamas …

Rule of law – POLITICO

Rule of law – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

And on that front, Europe has an advantage. Speaking at a global real-estate conference recently, I was struck by a recurring theme: the European continent as a safe haven. Real estate is, of course, a long-term kind of business. Real-estate investors have to have faith in the neighborhoods, cities, countries they’re buying properties in. And as the conference went on, executive after executive returned to Europe as a safe place to do business in because — well, because it’s true. Rule of law is regressing all over the world. According to the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index, nearly seven in 10 countries saw a decline in rule of law in 2025. This, the World Justice Project notes, is connected to growing authoritarianism. Europe, though, is standing strong: Denmark leads the ranking, followed by Norway, Finland, Sweden, New Zealand, Germany, Luxembourg, Ireland, the Netherlands and Australia. Places 11 through 20 are also occupied by European countries, along with Canada, Japan, Singapore and South Korea. The U.S. comes in 27th. For businesses, rule of law …

Brussels watchdog moves to ban Alternative for Germany’s EU party – POLITICO

Brussels watchdog moves to ban Alternative for Germany’s EU party – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The ESN political group doesn’t face sanctions, and the only effect that AfD MEPs would feel would be the lack of a political party to provide support in future EU elections or to coordinate policy with like-minded factions. The ESN party and ESN group were founded by Alternative for Germany in the wake of the 2024 EU election, and include Bulgaria’s Revival, France’s Reconquest (led by Éric Zemmour), Poland’s Confederation, Czechia’s SPD, Hungary’s Our Homeland Movement, the Netherlands’ Forum for Democracy, and Slovakia’s Republic Movement. In 2026 it is slated to receive over €2 million in subsidies from the European Parliament. The watchdog — the Authority for European Political Parties and Foundations — said it had found evidence that “cast doubt on the compliance” of the ESN party with EU values, the director of the authority, Pascal Schonard, wrote in a letter. The missive was addressed to the Council of the EU — comprising representatives of national governments — and was seen by POLITICO on Wednesday. The watchdog’s process was launched on Friday. The watchdog monitors whether …

Poland’s fugitive former justice minister can’t rest easy in the US – POLITICO

Poland’s fugitive former justice minister can’t rest easy in the US – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Ziobro is wanted in Poland over the alleged misuse of public funds and the deployment of Pegasus spyware against political opponents. He has consistently denied the charges, calling the investigation a political vendetta from Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. He arrived in the U.S. earlier this month to work for right-wing Polish broadcaster TV Republika.  Reuters reported on Monday that U.S. Deputy Secretary ​of State Christopher Landau directed senior State Department officials to expedite a U.S. visa for Ziobro. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has close ties to the Law and Justice party. Sikorski said he has expressed Warsaw’s “displeasure” at Ziobro’s presence in the U.S. to American authorities. Ziobro has called the criminal charges against him “fabricated” and said he would fight extradition before a U.S. court rather than return to Poland.  Asked whether Poland would seek extradition, Sikorski said that was a separate process but noted that Warsaw has an extradition treaty with Washington. “The first thing is, of course, whether he’s a journalist, whether he’s entitled to that visa,” the foreign minister …

Magyar to visit Brussels next week to discuss unfreezing funds for Hungary – POLITICO

Magyar to visit Brussels next week to discuss unfreezing funds for Hungary – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The money had been withheld over Budapest’s breaches of EU law under Viktor Orbán, who had governed the country for 16 consecutive years until losing last month’s general election. The €10.4 billion is part of a post-pandemic recovery fund and only a fraction of the money Hungary is seeking to unfreeze. But with a looming deadline, securing full access to that tranche has become the new government’s top priority. Magyar’s incoming administration has until Aug. 31 to formally request the money, while the Commission in Brussels has a deadline of Dec. 31 to make the payments. The country’s foreign minister stressed that Hungary was already working on a set of so-called “super milestones” and reforms that were needed to get access to the money. “Those are reinstating rule of law criteria. And that’s ensuring that the money is spent transparently, absolutely free of corruption,” she said. “And it’s important to emphasize here that that was our electoral mandate. We were running on a platform. … So these super milestones are 100 percent coinciding with what …

Montenegro enters the endgame for joining the EU – POLITICO

Montenegro enters the endgame for joining the EU – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Podgorica has closed 14 of the 33 chapters that need to be provisionally closed before it joins the bloc. Rule of law remains the toughest hurdle, with Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos urging Montenegro to keep reforms going. The country of some 600,000 people became an EU candidate in 2010, four years after splitting from Serbia, and opened accession talks in 2012. It has set the goal of becoming a member by 2028, even putting ’28 by 28′ branding on its national airline. The Commission aimed to use Montenegro as a test subject for its plans to prevent another “Hungary 2.0,” a gradual, two-tier accession proposal designed to curb democratic backsliding after countries join, but one that has faced pushback from EU member countries in recent months. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte also met with Montenegro’s President Jakov Milatović on Wednesday during a visit to the country. Milatović wrote on X that they discussed “key factors we must work on as a country in the final stage of negotiations with the European Union,” including regional stability and …

EU hails ‘new chapter’ as Magyar sworn in as Hungary’s prime minister – POLITICO

EU hails ‘new chapter’ as Magyar sworn in as Hungary’s prime minister – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Magyar has vowed a reset with Brussels to try to secure around €10 billion in EU funds frozen as a result of backsliding over human rights and the rule of law in recent years. The center-right Hungarian flew to Brussels for talks with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week as the new administration scrambles to meet an August deadline to show progress on reforms or risk losing access to the money altogether. Tisza, formed by Magyar in 2020 after he left Orbán’s ruling Fidesz party, won 141 of the 200 available parliamentary seats in April’s nationwide vote, giving the party the two-thirds supermajority required to make constitutional changes. Orbán, along with many of his top allies, has said he will not take his seat in the new parliament, but made an appearance Friday on a Hungarian-language YouTube channel to insist he would face any investigation into his conduct and is innocent of any wrongdoing. However, the departure of Orbán — who had consistently used his veto in the European Council to block …

Péter Magyar’s brother-in-law drops Hungary’s justice minister bid – POLITICO

Péter Magyar’s brother-in-law drops Hungary’s justice minister bid – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The reversal comes less than a week after Magyar publicly defended his decision to appoint his brother-in-law to one of the most powerful posts in the Hungarian government. Calling Melléthei-Barna’s professional competence “unquestionable,” the prime minister-designate argued concerns about nepotism were understandable, but manageable. Magyar also said his sister — who is a sitting judge in the Pest Central District Court — would step down from the bench “to avoid even the appearance of an intertwining of branches of power.” Magyar unveiled his first ministerial picks on April 20, days after ousting Viktor Orbán in Hungary’s April 12 election and ending the nationalist leader’s 16-year grip on power. Following Melléthei-Barna’s withdrawal, Magyar on Friday announced he had nominated Márta Görög, dean of the Faculty of Law and Political Sciences at the University of Szeged, for the justice minister post. The jurist is a regional president of the Hungarian Bar Association and a member of the division of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences specializing in legal matters. Hungary’s new parliament convenes on Saturday for an inaugural …

Don’t treat Turkey like Russia and China – POLITICO

Don’t treat Turkey like Russia and China – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

This is no longer just about a frozen accession file. It is about strategic direction, and whether the EU and Turkey can still imagine a meaningful future together. It is also where the deadlock in relations becomes most visible. As pressure on the country’s opposition hardens into a durable method of government, the issue moves well beyond the narrow confines of foreign policy and fundamentally becomes a question of regime. That is why so much of Turkey’s tensions with the EU are driven by the external consequences of its internal democratic decay. As a founding member of the Council of Europe, from the very beginning Turkey has been part of Europe’s institutional order, built on democracy, human rights and the rule of law. Through its place in NATO, it constitutes an important part of Europe’s security architecture and collective defense. From the Black Sea to critical energy routes, from migration to industrial production, the EU’s long-term resilience cannot be bolstered by excluding Turkey. This is no longer just about a frozen accession file. It is …

Magyar defends appointing brother-in-law as justice minister – POLITICO

Magyar defends appointing brother-in-law as justice minister – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The incoming prime minister initially unveiled his first seven ministerial picks in April, only days after defeating Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party and ending his 16-year rule. The rest of his governing team was announced Thursday. Magyar also met with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen earlier this week as he races to unfreeze billions in EU funds blocked over rule-of-law concerns. Officials in Brussels expect Hungary to stay aligned on Ukraine and demonstrate progress on those issues to release the cash. In the video posted on X, Magyar argues that his brother-in-law has been a part of the Tisza movement from the very beginning and that his choice is objective. “I have known him for a long time. My decision was based on his preparedness, his commitment to the rule of law,” he said, adding that his decision was not “a political calculation but the primary one was: Who could represent the program of a functioning and humane Hungary in the most prepared and moral conviction, with unwavering honesty?” “Fidesz has destroyed the rule of …