Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orban, has criticised Micheál Martin for standing “on the side of an empire” after the Taoiseach denounced his “wilful abuse” of EU veto powers.
Mr Orban, who has been in power since 2010, has frequently used veto powers, halting decisions that must be made by unanimous agreement, which has in the past delayed aid for Ukraine.
He has threatened to use the veto mechanism to halt Ukraine’s accession as an EU member state, which he has claimed would “bankrupt Europe”, saying last week: “There is no Ukrainian EU accession without Hungary.”
Speaking to Euronews, the Taoiseach described Hungary’s efforts to block the accession as “outrageous”.
“In my view, it’s essential that Ukraine becomes a member of the European Union for geopolitical reasons,” he said.
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Mr Martin accused the prime minister of “unreasonably exploiting” the mechanisms of the veto, saying Europe has made attempts to “try and unblock these issues through mediation and engagement.”
“We have always accepted unanimity on certain aspects and we think it’s been abused.
“I believe the European Union will not become workable if that abuse continues.
“I think there’s only so much member states can take in terms of wilful abuse of the veto, we’ve seen it play out in Ukraine and there are a number of instruments that we can use and we shouldn’t be afraid to use them,” he said.
These instruments include Article 7, he said, which allows EU membership rights to be suspended, including voting rights in the Council of the EU and the European Council, if a country seriously and persistently breaches the principles on which the EU is founded.
The Taoiseach also said he was “very concerned” about Hungary’s “undermining of the LGBTI community, and the banning of Pride parades.”
A law banning Pride events and allowing authorities to use facial recognition software to identify attendees was passed by Mr Orban’s government earlier this year
“These are very fundamental issues that the European Union has to engage with,” he said, adding that some of the rhetoric emanating from Mr Orban towards the EU is “inflaming public opinion in a very negative way.”
“What we have in Europe is very precious and we shouldn’t be shy in standing up for it and protecting it,” he said.
In response to the interview, Mr Orban posted on X that Hungarians have “always regarded Irish patriots as champions of freedom and national independence.”
“For us, Ireland is a symbol of liberty and sovereignty.
“For this reason, it is always shocking when we see that an Irish patriot chooses to stand on the side of an empire instead of national sovereignty. Please don’t ruin the love story between Irish and Hungarian patriots,” he said.
