Speaking in his regular Friday morning slot on Kossuth Rádió, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that as the epidemiological situation in most European countries is getting worse and worse, Hungary must focus on preventing foreigners from bringing the virus into the country. “For the summer, we switched to a new system where we mark countries with colors. This will end, and we will take a different approach beginning September 1,” PM Orbán said. He added that the current system could not be sustained and that they will introduce tighter restrictions. The prime minister also asked Hungarians to not make any travel plans to a southern destination starting in September.
“We must do everything we can so that the school year can start in the regular way,” PM Orbán said, underlining that while a digital curriculum is a good option, it falls short of normal education. Hungary gained enough experience at the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, he said, and can therefore build upon those experiences when handling the next wave of the epidemic.
“The most important task is to save human lives,” the PM stressed, adding that people can recover from the virus, but we need to pay special attention to the elderly, as they are at the highest risk.
According to the prime minister, the Hungarian government will not give up on its promise to create as many jobs as the virus destroys. So far, PM Orbán continued, we have introduced a moratorium on loan repayments as well as job protection and job creation plans. By the middle of September, a new, two-year economic growth plan will be put in motion with countless new measures, all aimed at boosting the economy.
Turning to the current political situation, the PM said, “Hungarian politics once had a geostrategic dimension, and it would be good if we returned to that way of thinking,” adding that there is a “mothership” in Central Europe called Poland. If we manage to “get into a proper formation around the Poles,” then our region will see a faster rate of development.
Concluding with the topic of neighborhood policy, Prime Minister Orbán said that the government has invested 10 years into achieving that “our neighbors do not isolate us any longer.” “We have never had such good relations with the Serbs and Slovaks,” the PM said in closing.