Hungarian premier says new EU migration pact is 'certain to fail'

BELGRADE, Serbia

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban slammed the EU’s new migration pact Thursday and said it is "certain to fail."

"The whole basic point for this pact is wrong. We had a huge debate about it and I spent hours trying to explain to other prime ministers that the whole package is wrong," Orban said in a year-end address international news conference in the capital, Budapest.

He said those who want to enter the EU must submit an asylum from outside the borders and wait there for a final decision.

"Until the EU does not assure this kind of stance, whatever package they will introduce, it is going to fail. I can tell you for sure that the migration package that was adopted yesterday will fail," he said.

Orban added that he was convinced that Hungary's way of regulating migration was the model and the only one in Europe that had been proven to work.

The EU Parliament passed the controversial immigration bill late Tuesday, fracturing the political majority.

The EU agreed on a new agreement on migration asylum, breaking years of political deadlock.

According to the European Commission, it is designed to manage and normalize migration for those arriving in the EU, establish a common approach to migration, and create a more efficient system.

While European politicians have hailed it as a historic breakthrough that will fend off far-right populism, migration advocacy groups have said the new system will further undermine human rights and increase suffering for migrants.

The full text of the pact has yet to be released, and the deal still needs to be formally ratified.

Orban accused the EU Commission of "blackmailing" through a €10.2 billion ($11.2 billion) fund it froze in 2022 on grounds that Hungary could not address concerns that it did not comply with the principles of the rule of law. The fund was released last week.

"In our opinion, Hungary fulfills all the characteristics of the rule of law, and when there are special requests from the EU Commission, we implement and cooperate with everything that comes from them," said Orban.

He added that the blackmail was "real" and it was accepted by European Parliament (EP) deputies.

"In the event of such blackmail, you cannot blame me for doing everything I could to protect the interests of Hungary," said Orban.

The ⁠EU cut off €10.2 billion in funding to Hungary in 2021 after the EP filed a lawsuit against the EU Commission on grounds that it did not prevent Hungary from receiving funds from the common budget, which violated the principle of the rule of law.

The EU Commission announced on April 27 that it had initiated the procedure stipulating the granting of a share of the budget to Hungary due to long-standing concerns about the misuse of EU funds.