Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has met members of the Hungarian Diaspora Council to discuss challenges around Hungary’s security and sovereignty.
PM Orbán said, “The next 10-15 years will be about protecting sovereignty, not only in Hungary but in a number of other regions of the world.” The prime minister said he expected much debate around the government’s sovereignty protection bill, but “clear restrictions must be introduced to prevent foreign funds from influencing Hungary’s elections.” “Let us preserve Hungary as one of the most secure countries in the world amid current challenges posed by wars and migration,” PM Orbán added. Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén told a meeting of the Hungarian Diaspora Council that the time had come for Hungarian nationality to be seen as an advantage after its drawbacks of the past one hundred years. Since 2010, the Fidesz government has fully revamped the country’s policy for Hungarians living beyond the borders and “turned challenges into opportunities”, Zsolt Semjén told the 22nd meeting of the council. Preserving the nation and improving Hungarians’ quality of life is a priority for the government, Semjén said. “Hungary will only fully survive if all parts of the nation are preserved,” he said, noting that support of Hungarians across the borders had increased tenfold every year, reaching a total of 1,300 billion forints (EUR 3.5bn).