Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who is expected in Georgia for an official two-day visit, “does not represent the European Union”, European diplomat Josep Borrell said. This was reported by AFP.
In an interview with Spanish state radio (RNE), Borrell stressed that “Orban will go to Georgia today (Monday) to show his support for the Georgian government, of course”, but also emphasised: “Whatever Mr Orban says during his visit, he does not represent the European Union.”
As a reminder, Hungarian nationalist Orban is the only leader of an EU member state who maintains close ties with Moscow. He is also one of the few who reacted to the results of the parliamentary elections in Georgia by congratulating the ruling Georgian Dream party on its “powerful victory”.
In response, the pro-European opposition in Georgia called on people to take to the streets on Monday to protest the election results, which the opposition said were “stolen” by the ruling party. Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili even referred to a “Russian operation” in the context of the election process.
Borrell also noted that “a president in office in the EU has no authority in foreign policy matters,” underscoring Brussels’ growing distrust of the Hungarian prime minister, whose country currently holds the EU’s semesterly presidency.
Borrell is currently in Barcelona to attend a meeting of the Union for the Mediterranean (UpM), which is expected to discuss the situation in the Middle East. This event underlines the importance of cooperation between EU countries and their partners in the region.
