Page 49 - AEI Insights 2018 Vol 4 Issue 1

THE POLITICS OF NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY VS. EU
MEMBERSHIP IN HUNGARY

Balazs Szanto

Lecturer of International Relations, Hungary

szanto.balazs@hotmail.com

Abstract

The paper takes a critical look at the National Consultation process in 2017 in Hungary to
analyse the ongoing conflict between Budapest and Brussel. The Hungarian Government has
been hostile to various EU policies arguing that they violate the sovereignty of Hungary. This
paper seeks to refute this argument by showing that Hungary has the sovereignty to withdraw
from the agreements, the obligations of which it refuses to honour. Rather, the Government is
engaging in the politics of sovereignty, i.e. creating a sovereignty dispute in order to secure
short-term political objectives, such as political survival. This dangerous trend can be observed
in the populist politics of an increasing number of states, including the United Kingdom and
the United States, and it presents a tangible threat to any order based on international law. The
regimes in question use the politics of sovereignty in order to renege on their international
obligations.

Keywords: Hungary, European Union, sovereignty, asylum, refugee crisis, national
consultation

Introduction

It is a cold October morning when a thick envelope arrives from the Government of Hungary.
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The envelope contains the questionnaire of the 2 National Consultation (NC) or Nemzeti
Konzultáció in Hungarian, for 2017 as well as a signed letter from Prime Minister Viktor
Orban. The letter states that Hungary is under attack from foreign forces who seek to undermine
the sovereign authority of the state and endanger Hungarian citizens. It is a colourful and well-
produced package, with a particularly unflattering image of George Soros included on its front
page. It is also predominantly nonsense.

This paper asks a simple question: Is Hungarian sovereignty under attack? To answer this, one
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has to dissect the points contained in the 1 and 2 National Consultations presented in 2017,
albeit focusing on the first as the second is largely dominated by the Government attacking a
non-existent plan. One has to understand what the Government considers an attack on the
country’s sovereignty by the European Union. Then one has to examine what the situation
actually is, what the EU actually has said and done. Sovereignty in the international system is
a complicated matter, certainly more complex then what the National Consultation allows
space for. Hungary’s sovereignty is not under a genuine attack, rather the Government follows
the suit of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom and Donald Trump in the United
States as it engages in the politics of sovereignty to secure its own political objectives. A critical
discussion on the issue at hand is especially necessary as the state of the European Union