János Bóka, Hungary’s EU affairs minister, said the unfolding political struggle between sovereigntists and federalists will define the coming decades.
Minister Bóka told a panel discussion at the 34th Balvanyos Summer Open University and Student Camp in Băile Tușnad (Tusnadfurdo) that one of the most significant dividing lines between European party families is whether they consider themselves federalists or sovereigntists, emphasising that European institutions and European policy were in need of change.
Minister Bóka said this key difference between political groupings also impacted the division of powers and how the EU’s institutional system functioned.
"This struggle between two political wings is just starting to unfold, and it will define the coming decades," he said, adding that the political discourse would also shift in this direction.
Minister Bóka said Europeans were unsure about what to do in order to bring about change in the EU.
He said there appeared to be no limit to the number of national governments that could fail because of the migration crisis without it triggering a change in the EU’s migration policy. The minister said this raised the questions as to whether European citizens still had a role in shaping politics, whether European democracy still existed and whether sovereignty still mattered.
Minister Bóka said an EU member state should have the chance to shape certain policies if they did not work at the European level. "This is exactly what Hungary is doing regarding migration, for which it has to pay a serious monetary and political price," he said.