Rebels put pressure on Brussels

The ongoing duel between Warsaw and Budapest with Brussels has already reached the courts. Poland has gone further in its challenge, with all-but unconditional support for Hungarian president, Viktor Orbán. Poland and Hungary are both part of the Visegrad Group – now known as the “Visegrad Rebels” – which also includes the Czech Republic and Slovakia, although the latter two have increasingly distanced themselves due to the deepening dispute between their group partners and Brussels.

The European Union is extremely uncomfortable with the increasingly authoritarian and xenophobic policies that Poland and Hungary have been pursuing, and has initiated legal proceedings to try to put a brake on some of their recent practices. Meanwhile, the European Commission has given Poland notice to pay some 70 million euros in fines it was issued for failing to reverse an illegal disciplinary regime for judges. Poland has responded, saying it will not pay the fine and has criticised the Commission’s actions.

The tension is palpable and growing. One of the consequence is that EU authorities have still not given the green light to the post-pandemic recovery plans of these countries. Nor are they likely to do so any time soon. This means they will not have access to EU stimulus funds aimed at reviving their post-pandemic economies. Orbán has insisted that the manoeuvre against Poland and Hungary has no “legal basis” and that the payment of these stimulus funds cannot be denied, as they are a loan that the EU partners have jointly agreed upon.