Minister for EU Affairs János Bóka has issued a sharp rebuttal to recent calls from Brussels commentators advocating punitive measures against Hungary over its Ukraine policy. In a published letter responding to a Financial Times op-ed by Mujtaba Rahman, Minister Bóka criticized proposals to suspend Hungary’s voting rights or to exert “financial blackmail,” warning such actions represent a dangerous shift in the European Union’s political culture.
“I fundamentally disagree with the author’s conclusions and his perception of the EU on which his conclusions are founded,” Minister Bóka wrote, rejecting the idea that Hungary’s dissent on Ukraine policy constitutes a threat to European unity. Instead, he called Hungary’s approach a rational and necessary alternative. “Supporting and arming Ukraine as long as it takes is not a strategy; it is a formulation used to cover up its absence,” the minister wrote
In the letter, Minister Bóka outlined Hungary’s strategic vision: “localize, de-escalate and end the military conflict; engage in a discussion on a new European security architecture with all global stakeholders; develop individual and collective capabilities for EU member states to be able to defend themselves; and create the necessary economic background by making the EU more competitive.”
According to the minister, this approach provides “a way of keeping the EU out of the war and a chance to bring peace where there is war.” He further argued that Hungary’s stance would “restore some of our competitive advantages and reinforce defense capacities burnt in Ukraine.”
Minister Bóka warned against turning political disagreement into institutional punishment. “The author not only rejects our approach, but questions Hungary’s right to defend it,” he noted. “He proposes to use instruments designed to protect the EU’s fundamental values and financial interests for an unrelated purpose: crush dissent within the EU.”
Such tactics, Bóka cautioned, “carry a disturbing perspective for the EU’s future.” He stressed that if the EU continues to define itself as being at war, then alternative views will inevitably be labeled as threats. “If you believe that the EU is at war, then all dissenting opinions will become existential threats. If you believe that you are fighting an external enemy, you will end up finding internal enemies that must be equally disposed of.”
In concluding, Minister Bóka issued a stark warning: “The EU is not an external or internal war project. Let’s not allow it to become one.” His message reasserts Hungary’s belief that peace, not escalation, must be Europe’s guiding objective—and that respecting national sovereignty remains fundamental to the EU’s legitimacy.