The European Commission must suspend all infringement proceedings that undermine the measures aimed at protecting the territorial and national integrity of the member states and the safety of their citizens, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán wrote in a letter addressed to the President of the European Commission.

In the letter sent to Ursula von der Leyen - which Bertalan Havasi, the head of the Prime Minister's Press Office, made available to MTI on Monday - the Prime Minister highlighted that the situation unfolding on the eastern borders of the European Union and the ongoing discussions between the committee and Hungary left some key questions unanswered.

He explained: global challenges require an increase in resilience against crises, and it was in this spirit that Hungary decided last July not to become an obstacle to the financial recovery of the union affected by Covid.

The Prime Minister said, "we have to admit that the current emergency situation must also be handled with special measures. Our security and territorial integrity are at stake". Consequently, in this situation, the current legal framework must be adapted to reality, and "Member States cannot be held responsible or punished for applying workable - and proportionate - solutions to the challenges that threaten us all," he pointed out.

He recalled: in the conclusions of the European Council on 21-22 October 2021, they unanimously decided that urgent measures should be taken against the recent migratory pressure and asked the committee to propose the necessary changes in the legal framework of the European Union, as well as appropriate financial support , specific measures to ensure immediate and appropriate responses. The reason for this was that the current legal framework does not reflect reality, it is outdated and dysfunctional, he added.

According to Viktor Orbán, "perhaps we can all agree that the current legal framework does not provide adequate tools that member states under pressure can use in a crisis situation". Highlighting only the weakest link in the current system: the right to enter the territory of the member state must be ensured for everyone without the possibility of a thorough background check of the applicant at the border before they are allowed to enter the country, he pointed out.

He noted: once the applicant is in the territory of the Union, he leaves for his desired destination country before the end of the asylum procedure, so the risk of secondary movement cannot be eliminated, which encourages other Member States to maintain internal border protection contrary to the Schengen Border Control Code.

The prime minister emphasized that special circumstances require special measures. This was also the case in the case of the Covid crisis, when they decided to relax the state aid rules and activate the general exemption clause, thus allowing Member States to deviate from the budget requirements.

He recalled: when the European Commission decided to launch an infringement procedure against the solution that Hungary had chosen to deal with the migration crisis, migration pressure primarily affected the southern borders of Europe: from the east, along the Western Balkan route, and from the south, along the Mediterranean -through the sea. "Hungary steadfastly protected the security of Europe and its citizens by erecting a physical barrier and did everything to distinguish between those who needed international protection and those who were only looking for the economic benefits of European life," he said.

The Prime Minister added: nevertheless, the European Union's legal framework consistently failed to manage the situation, as did the proposals that never enjoyed the full support of the member states, which were seen in the last six years.

He emphasized: "now we have to face new realities". Economies are struggling and migration pressure is increasing not only in the south but also on the eastern borders. "We have to realize that the severity of the current crisis presents us with greater challenges than even the discussions on economic recovery," the Prime Minister wrote to the President of the European Commission.

Viktor Orbán therefore asked the committee "in the light of the serious and urgent crisis to be resolved" to make a proposal to adapt the legal framework to the changed realities, to immediately end the enforcement of the existing, outdated regulations that prevent the solution of the situation, and to suspend all breach of obligations a procedure that undermines the measures aimed at protecting the territorial and national integrity of the Member States and the security of their citizens.

MTI

Photo: Facebook / Viktor Orbán