Orbán accuses Czechia of "switching sides" in EU federalism debate

In a speech to the roughly 1.5 million member-strong Hungarian minority living in Romania, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in the Transylvanian town of Baile Tusnad on Saturday that Czechia has gone over to the side of the European Union federalists in the "struggle between federalists and sovereignists". Citing Hungarian media sources, the Czech News Agency reports that he accused federalists in the European Union of attacking the Visegrad Four (V4), and said that the only Visegrad Group member states who continue to defend the national sovereignty of EU countries are Hungary and Poland.

He also said that the elections to the European Parliament next year will be a battle between the two sides, where, in his view, the main proponents of federalism at the EU level are Germany and France. He expressed hope that member states such as Italy, Austria or Spain may join the camp of supporters of a weaker EU and greater national sovereignty.