Meloni and Orban show their unity in the fight against immigration and low birth rate | International

The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, and her Hungarian counterpart, the ultra-conservative Viktor Orban, have once again demonstrated the ideological harmony that prevails between them. The two met on Monday at the presidential palace in Rome on the occasion of the Hungarian head of government’s brief European tour before assuming the rotating presidency of the European Council next July. During their meeting, the leaders reaffirmed the affinity that unites them…

The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, and her Hungarian counterpart, the ultra-conservative Viktor Orban, have once again demonstrated ideological harmony. The two met on Monday at the Rome presidential palace on the occasion of the Hungarian head of government’s brief European tour before assuming the recurring presidency of the European Council next July. During their meeting, the leaders reaffirmed the affinity that unites them on issues such as irregular immigration and the fight against low birth rates. Meloni has unwaveringly supported the project of the Hungarian presidency, which will have these issues among its priorities. “We must work together so that the demographic challenge is a priority for everyone and a strong Europe becomes a protagonist in the world,” he said.

The Italian leader also stressed the “excellent state” of bilateral relations between Italy and Hungary, praising their anti-immigration policies. “We must strengthen a new European approach based on the protection of external borders, the fight against mass immigration and the fight against human traffickers,” he said.

The two far-right leaders have left an image of harmony in Rome, and are on the verge of presenting an idea of ​​the strength of the sovereigntist pivot and Meloni’s leadership, in a crucial week of negotiations over the distribution of posts in community institutions. The prime minister aims to overcome the isolation of Italy, the union’s third-largest economy, in negotiations for key appointments.

Although the Italian leader has not commented on the matter, the Hungarian prime minister has criticised the election of senior officials of the EU institutions, noting that it is exclusive and is decided by three traditional political families: the populists, the socialists and the liberals. “The three major European parties exclude the rest and push them into opposition,” he lamented. “This does not respond to the principles of European cooperation. The original EU project was not this, it was based on the inclusion and inclusion of everyone, big and small.

Orban has also committed to cooperate with Meloni “to strengthen the parties of the European right”, although he has denied that his party, Fidesz, enters the Italian-led group of European conservatives and reformists. The Hungarian leader has traditionally been one of Meloni’s closest allies in Europe, as well as a role model, although they do not share ranks in the European Parliament. The Hungarian leader, who abruptly left the European People’s Party group in 2021 due to his policies conservativehas clarified that his refusal to join Meloni’s group is due to the presence of a Romanian party that he defines as “anti-Hungarian”. This is the newly incorporated nationalist formation Alliance for the Romanian Union.

Differing opinions on Ukraine

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In a joint statement, Meloni also acknowledged that Rome and Budapest’s positions on the war in Ukraine do not coincide and pointed out that despite this, the two have discussed the matter in general. The Italian leader has publicly thanked the Hungarian prime minister for not blocking aid to Kiev in both European institutions and NATO, “even when he did not fully agree with it,” Meloni said.

The Hungarian ultra-conservative leader has systematically obstructed decision-making in support of Kiev in both the EU and NATO, where he has raised his right of veto on several occasions, although he has given in after difficult negotiations with the rest of the partners. Since the start of the Russian aggression, Hungary has stayed away from joint actions such as sending arms and aid to Ukraine and has made it clear that it will not change its position.

Orban, the EU’s most quarrelsome partner, maintains a fluid relationship with the Kremlin, despite the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Last year he defied the EU and became the first EU bloc leader to meet Vladimir Putin since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against the Russian president in early 2023 for alleged war crimes over his involvement in the “illegal deportation” of Ukrainian children.

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