MEPs call to strip Hungary’s EU voting rights amid Orbán’s ‘peace missions’.

Members of the European Parliament demanded Hungary’s EU voting rights be stripped after its Prime Minister’s trips to Russia and China.

In a letter, 63 MEPs addressed European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and European Parliament chief Roberta Metsola, saying Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán “has already caused significant damage by exploiting and abusing the role of the Council Presidency.”

Hungary took over the rotating Council of the EU presidency from Belgium on 1 July. Since then, Orbán has launched self-declared “peace missions” to Kyiv, Moscow, Beijing and Washington and claimed, without authorization, to be representing the EU.

Orbán “undertook several diplomatic visits, notably to visit Putin in Russia and Xi Jinping in China, during which he intentionally misrepresented his empowerments,” the lawmakers wrote, and called on the Parliament to respond accordingly. “This requires real actions, such as suspending Hungary’s voting rights in the Council, since practice has shown that mere verbal condemnations of this situation have no effect.”

The letter, supported by MEPs from a number of countries and parliamentary groups including the EPP, Renew, the Left and the Greens, is the latest attempt to censure Budapest for its rogue presidency.

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