Politics

PM Orbán has already met the Russian head of state seven times since the Ukrainian crisis began. The more Orbán foments the conflict with the EU, the greater the chance for Russia under Vladimir Putin to influence the diplomatic balance within the EU in his favor.

Hearings, even outside the grilling season, are done in a similar fashion. When a committee invites a guest for an “exchange of views”, the way it is handled in the committee is by and large the same. MEPs are lectured by the Committee Chair how to use their five-minute slot and how to ask a question.

Hungary held its municipal elections on October 13, 2019. Although the opposition and the regnant Fidesz party applied starkly different communication strategies, one topic featured in both campaigns: antisemitism.

The Law and Justice (PiS) party won the elections in Poland. The opposition is in crisis. Most observers had expected it: The national-conservative government of the party has been clearly confirmed in office.

The report by the Lex Super Omnia Prosecutors’ Association details the negative consequences of the changes in the prosecutorial service implemented by the Law and Justice government in Poland. It also reveals a number of pathological situations related mainly to personnel policy.

In recent years, the system of disciplinary punishment of judges has also changed. It was made very dependent on the Minister of Justice. It enables disciplinary proceedings against judges and their harassment for disobedience to the authorities and criticism of actions harmful to the rule of law.

It is crucial to understand the quality and evolution of Hungarian-American relations under the Orbán governments, which have been in office since 2010, as well as the main defining events in the relationship between the Hungarian and American governments.

Estonian Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Marko Mihkelson (Reform) stated the coalition government is moving towards redefining the country\'s foreign policy approach - a response to an announcement by Interior Minister on the possibility of revoking visa-free entry to the country for Ukrainian citizens.

Prime Minister Jüri Ratas (Centre) has said that he does not have any red lines or issues on which it\'s not possible to compromise. The fact that it\'s possible to compromise on truly anything, including a lack of political responsibility, is confirmed by the actions of the current government on a weekly basis.

“How Do Democracies Win?” was the main theme of this year\'s edition of Freedom Games, an annual prestigious forum of ideas organized in Lodz, Poland. Needless to say, the title of the forum is a question uneasy to answer. I would also not dare to provide a straight-forward answer to it.