Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán spoke at the 24th Tusványos summer university and youth camp for Hungarians that started on Tuesday in Băile Tușnad (Tusnádfürdő), Romania. He talked about the EU’s future and the crisis as well as the Hungarian economy’s success.
After arriving to Romania on Friday, he also met with ethnic Hungarian leaders at a working dinner and discussed the most important issues of Hungarian communities in the Carpathian Basin.
The Prime Minister, in faith with tradition, addressed the participants on the closing day of the summer university, where he emphasised that economic growth in the European Union can primarily come from Central Europe. He stated that if the Eastern European countries were accepted into the Union during the 1990s, the crisis in 2008 would have affected a much stronger Europe and better answers could have been found with greater ease.
Another shortcoming of the EU, he put forward, is that it had failed to fully establish a common financial union in a consequent and rational manner. A financial system of this kind can be successful in times of prosperity, but in a crisis its problems soon become apparent, as they have within the euro zone, he pointed out.
According to Prime Minister Orbán, Europe’s role and importance has been questioned and it is a realistic danger that the continent might lose its cultural, economic and civilizational positions it had previously held for centuries. The current European crisis may easily turn into a long period of recession instead of a transitional phase lasting only a few years, he warned. With regard to Hungary’s role, he stated that the primary question is whether or not the country will be a beneficiary of the new world order.
The Hungarian Prime Minister also said that even though Hungary’s repayment to the IMF is only be due later, it should be settled during the summer, therefore he has instructed Minister of National Economy Mihály Varga to effect the early repayment of the loan requested by the previous governments. The sum necessary is available, he pointed out, thanks to efforts of the Hungarian people these past three years. He highlighted that the Hungarian Government follows a national economic policy in order to keep the values produced by Hungarians within the country, and the new constitution serves as a framework for this goal, keeping the rights and responsibilities in balance.
(Prime Minister's Office)
