Right-wing and liberal commentators are equally critical of the decision by the Budapest Municipal Council to name a street after former Socialist Prime Minister Gyula Horn. They oppose the decision on account of Horn’s past as a member of the communist militia set up after the 1956 revolution. READ MORE
A left-wing commentator accuses the government of proposing an illegitimate and extremely restrictive budget for 2023. His pro-government counterpart argues that the government will keep energy prices down and welfare spending high. READ MORE
A liberal news site predicts that the newly announced special taxes will trigger an infringement procedure by the European Commission. Pro-government commentators, on the other hand, lambast the left-wing opposition for ‘taking the side of big corporations.’ READ MORE
A left-wing columnist believes the new exceptional powers under which the new taxes will be levied are motivated by an insatiable appetite for power, while his pro-government counterpart sees them as an attempt to serve social justice. READ MORE
A liberal commentator notes that the American Conservative Conference in Budapest has been ‘snubbed’ by high profile American personalities, while a pro-government columnist welcomes PM Orbán’s 12-point roadmap for conservatives to overcome liberals. READ MORE
A left-wing pundit sees the Prime Minister’s inaugural speech as a harbinger of lasting confrontation with the rest of Europe, while a right-wing columnist describes the same words as raising hope for Europe. READ MORE
A pro-government commentator and his left-wing counterpart both note the new president’s fierce condemnation of ‘Putin’s aggression’ against Ukraine in her inaugural speech. But they equally point out her remarks cautioning against sanctions, which she said would harm Hungarians more than Russia. What is welcomed by the former, however, is seen as a shortcoming by the latter. READ MORE
Pro-government commentators find the EU proposal to eliminate Russian oil unrealistic and even counterproductive. Left-wing and liberal pundits also acknowledge the economic cost of an oil embargo, but fear that abandoning or diluting the plan would weaken the EU and benefit Russia. READ MORE
Before leaks or rumours spread about substantial compensation to be paid to Hungary for its vote on the ban of oil imports from Russia, a left-wing commentator argued that Hungary stands isolated in the world, while his pro-government counterpart saw Prime Minister Orbán as a key actor on the European scene. READ MORE