The European Union’s central challenge is to defend its members against external aggression, whether from the US or Russia, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s regime has long frustrated this effort. Even if Orbán is defeated in this year’s election, EU leaders must take the right lessons from his 16 years of illiberal rule.
VIENNA – Hungary’s upcoming general election will have far-reaching implications both for Hungary and the European Union. The EU’s central geopolitical challenge is to defend Europe against aggression from both Russia and the United States – each of which is lashing out to compensate for its own relative loss of power – and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s regime has long frustrated this effort. But even if Orbán is finally defeated, European leaders must take the right lessons from his 15 years of illiberal misrule.
