Latest Developments Re: The European Union and Russia

The European Union has rebuked the Hungarian President’s appeasement of Russia. Hungary currently holds the European Union’s rotating presidency. The Hungarian President, Viktor Orban, an anti-migrant nationalist who describes himself as “illiberal” and who rules by decree and whom the 27-member EU describes as an autocrat, went on a tour earlier this month immediately after assuming the EU presidency to advance his proposals for appeasement of the Russian Federation without consulting with the EU or making it clear that he was not visiting Russia and other capitals, as well as the Russian-backed American presidential candidate, Donald Trump, in his capacity as EU President. Orban, who had been pro-Russian, did not support Russian aggression against Ukraine, but has not sent arms to Ukraine, unlike the other EU members, and has consistently opposed supporting Ukraine with military aid to defend itself against Russia. His peace proposals are likely the typical ones of appeasement of Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin, the ex-Soviet intelligence officer intent on restoring the Soviet Union, by letting him keep some of the Ukrainian territory he has conquered, in violation of Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, which Russia had recognized. Such appeasement would reward aggression, move Russian forces closer to Europe, and only whet the Russian czar’s thirst for more territory. The EU has withheld funds to Hungary because of its increasing authoritarianism and the main center-right EU parliamentary group, the European People’s Party, which Hungary later left, had suspended Hungarian membership for the same reason. In an unprecedented move, the EU Commission announced that it will boycott informal meetings hosted by the Hungarian President because of his appeasement tour. The European Parliament last week reiterated its continued military aid to defend Ukraine by a vote of a large majority, as the new center-right-led coalition with centrists, the center-left and Greens was elected to the offices in the EU with ample votes in favor. The coalition, which supports the EU itself and favors human rights, the transatlantic alliance with the United States, and defending Ukraine, keeps out both the far left and the far right. German Ursula von der Leyen, of the conservative Christian Democratic Union party, was re-elected to another five-year term with a larger vote than her first term. Meanwhile, the United States last week sanctioned Russian hackers who had targeted critical infrastructure in America for cyberattacks. The hackers had previously targeted Ukraine and the States and private companies that are supporting it.