In the Hungarian weekly “Élet és Irodalom”, Péter Techet analysed the results of the regional elections in Saxony and Thuringia, the reasons of the rise of anti-establishment parties, and the potential impact on the federal politics.
The article (in Hungarian) can be read here (after a video).
You can read the short article with comments from IDM-Director Sebastian Schäffer for ED News here. It is also available in Azerbaijani.
On the Portuguese news channel “TSF Rádio Notícias”, Péter Techet spoke about how the European Union can respond to the Hungarian EU Council Presidency and why Péter Magyar intends to fight Orbán with nationalist rhetoric.
You can read and listen to the report (in Portuguese) here.
In light of various scandals that have recently come to light within the Calvinist-Reformed and Russian Orthodox Churches in Hungary, Péter Techet spoke on Austrian public broadcast Ö1 about how Viktor Orbán uses religion for political purposes and how the churches in Hungary allow themselves to be instrumentalized for Orbán’s political goals.
The program is available here.
Ein Vortrag von Sebastian Schäffer, Direktor des IDM, während des 13. Internationalen Donaufestes wurde von den Medien wahrgenommen und im Artikel „Unter Nachbarn im Donauraum“ in der Südwest Presse Ulm ausführlich beschrieben.
In seinem Vortrag „Der Donauraum nach der Europawahl 2024: Perspektiven für die Zivilgesellschaft“ analysierte er vor rund 130 Zuhörenden die Europawahlergebnisse vom 9. Juni und betonte die niedrige Wahlbeteiligung im Donauraum sowie die Dringlichkeit, mutig zu werden, um die Situation zu verbessern.
Direktor Schäffer hat den Vortrag auf Einladung von der Baden-Württemberg Stiftung gemeinsam mit dem Staatsministerium Baden-Württemberg gehalten.
Der vollständige Text befindet sich hier.
In the Hungarian-language edition of the Slovak daily newspaper “Denník N”; Péter Techet analyzed the new group “Patriots for Europe”, which was founded in the European Parliament with far-right parties, including those from Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Austria. Techet thinks that the new faction is essentially a rebranding of the former “Identity and Democracy” (ID) faction, as most member parties come from this group. However, the rebranding allows Viktor Orbán and Andrej Babiš, who were not part of ID, to present the new faction as their success. Techet interprets Marine Le Pen’s decision to remain in this group as a choice against the moderate path taken by Giorgia Meloni and her “European Conservatives and Reformists” (ERC) faction. Although the new “Patriots” faction will become the third strongest force in the new European Parliament, Techet does not expect it to significantly influence European politics, as the informal coalition between the European People’s Party (EPP), the Socialists (S&D), and the Liberals (Renew) still holds a majority. Additionally, the far-right parties are still divided on issues such as the war in Ukraine.
The article (in Hungarian) can be read here.
According to media reports, a new far-right faction called “Sovereignists” will be established in the European Parliament after the other far-right group, “Identity and Democracy” (ID) had expelled the “Alternative for Germany”. The new faction will include MEPs from Central and Eastern Europe as well, namely from Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Poland. Péter Techet spoke about the fragmentation of the anti-EU, far-right forces in the Hungarian-language program of Slovak public broadcasting.
The entire interview (in Hungarian) can be heard here.
For “Napunk”, the Hungarian-language version of the Slovak daily newspaper “DenníkN”, Péter Techet analysed why Giorgia Meloni had rejected Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party’s membership in the ECR (European Conservatives and Reformists). Meloni wants to present herself as moderate in the European politics and therefore is not interested in cooperating with Orbán. It remains unclear which party group the Fidesz party will then be able to join.
The full article (in Hungarian) can be read here.
Der Presse-Artikel „Bitte ein Spitzenprogramm statt Spitzenkandidaten“ von Sebastian Schäffer und Sophia Beiter wurde ins Französische übersetzt und erschien kurz vor den EU-Wahlen in der Zeitung Courrier International.
Hier finden Sie den französischen Text.
Und hier das Original.
ED News contacted IDM Director Sebastian Schäffer regarding the US permission to Ukraine to attack Russian territory with its weapons. Schäffer’s response was used in the article above, here is his full answer:
First of all it is not only a good idea, but a necessity to protect the people in Ukraine from the unjustified aggression of the Russian Federation. International law is also crystal clear, Kyiv can strike targets anywhere in Russia to prevent further attacks. That does of course not justify destroying civilian infrastructure like power plants, something that Moscow has been doing for 830 days and counting in whole Ukraine, especially intensifying these heinous war crimes recently. I have personally witnessed what just a few weeks of Russian occupation mean and I unconditionally would enable Ukraine to defend itself. Why the US and also European states like Germany have not allowed this until now eludes me. The decision comes late, has cost a lot of lives and caused immense damage and suffering, but better than never. I do not understand why it has taken so much time and I also do not see any particular reason for this change in policy, however, I do not believe that the fear of becoming a belligerent and/or the reaction from Russia was the primary reasoning behind it. Putin and his cronies have constantly threatened with consequences, nuclear strikes on Western cities are discussed on television, but we must not let us be intimidated by the regime in Moscow. The nuclear doctrine of the Russian Federation is quite clear, so is the retaliation should NATO territory be targeted, and as for Ukraine, I wonder what severe consequences should they fear? Sure there is always a possibility to further escalate, but the people in Ukraine are fighting for their survival, as Putin aims to annihilate the Ukrainian state.
