Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Another EU member added to Brussels’ list of undesirables

Another EU member added to Brussels’ list of undesirables

As Slovenia’s disastrous presidency of the European Council draws to a close, MEPs are determined to start making life difficult for the Balkan state after a series of provocations from Prime Minister Janez Jansa.

Slovenia’s six-month rolling presidency of the European Council ends on December 31. It has been a calamity for Brussels and Ljubljana in equal measure, and has revealed the fissure at the heart of the European Union.

EU member states take it in turn to hold the presidency of the European Council, regardless of their domestic political situation or their size. Sometimes this can prove inconvenient for Brussels, and this has certainly been the case with Slovenia.

Many on the arch-federalist liberal wing of the EU questioned Slovenia’s fitness to hold the presidency from the start. The Balkan state was deemed to be too small and too illiberal, and its government not fully signed up to the EU project.

Indeed, just before the Slovenes took on the presidency, its PM Janez Jansa responded to criticism from the European Parliament by tweeting that his country “owes the EU nothing. We fought for our freedom and democracy 30 years ago.”


Like former US President Donald Trump, Jansa has a penchant for tweeting and is mockingly known by opponents as Marshal Tweeto – a reference to the former leader of Yugoslavia, Josep Broz Tito. So, in some ways, it is not difficult to see why Brussels was so anxious about Slovenia’s presidency of the European Council.

Nevertheless, the real source of the hostility towards Jansa is that, in recent years, he has formed an increasingly close alliance with Hungary’s Viktor Orban and Poland’s ruling PiS government, who are a constant thorn in the side of the EU.

For example, Jansa’s government has backed Poland and Hungary in their battle with Brussels over the rule of law. He has also highlighted the growing east-west cultural divide in Europe and has argued that the EU will “continue to shrink” (a reference to Brexit) if all ideas are not given a fair and equal hearing.

During his country’s council presidency, Jansa also attended the Demographic Summit in Budapest alongside Orban and the then-Czech PM Andrej Babis, another leader who was often at loggerheads with Brussels.

This gathering highlighted the need for robust borders and urged the promotion of the traditional family unit. Indeed, the conference championed policies that run counter to the neo-liberal Western values of the EU, and it was no doubt seen as an embarrassment in Brussels for the Slovenian presidency to be sharing a platform with such EU undesirables.

One of the major ambitions of the Slovenian presidency was to foster closer relations between the EU and the Western Balkans states Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia, with the hope that there would be some sort of concrete roadmap for full membership.

This, however, failed to materialise, with no firm dates regarding accession offered. Indeed, a number of Western European ambassadors voiced their concerns about migratory flows should the Western Balkans states join the bloc. Regardless of what Jansa says, the failure to make significant progress in this area must have been a massive disappointment to the Slovenes.

In October, Jansa responded to the European Parliament sending “observers” on a fact-finding mission to Slovenia to assess compliance with the rule of law by tweeting that a number of MEPs were paid puppets of Hungarian billionaire George Soros.

The tweet prompted outrage and President of the European Parliament David Sassoli responded, “We urgently call on Jansa to cease the provocations against members of the European Parliament. Attacks on members of this house are also attacks on European citizens.”

And now, in the dying throes of this troubled presidency, MEPs have taken their revenge and shown their disdain for the Slovenian government. A recent resolution passed in Strasbourg condemned the Jansa regime for its failure to comply with “EU values.”

The text listed a host of alleged misdemeanours, which included a failure to follow the rule of law and the repression of press freedoms. We have heard all these allegations before regarding Hungary and Poland. A total of 356 MEPs voted in favour of the resolution, with 284 opposed and 40 abstentions.

And this is how it starts. This is the opening gambit of the coming campaign against the Slovenian government, and it is no coincidence that the MEPs waited until the country’s presidency was in its final days to pass such a resolution.

Slovenia is now firmly on the EU naughty step alongside Hungary and Poland, and I guarantee this is only the beginning of a campaign of persecution. Next will come demands, threats and then finally the withholding of EU funds, all with the ultimate goal of forcing a change of government.

In the shorter term, the Brussels mandarins can rest easy in the knowledge that France takes over the presidency on New Year’s Day. Instead of being at loggerheads with the European Council presidency, they will find President Macron more pliable and willing to do their bidding.

Indeed, many expect Macron to use the presidency to strut on the international stage and champion all things EU, which will be music to the ears of the Eurocrats and MEPs.

So, it is goodbye Slovenia and hello France. It has been a rocky six months and one that the European Union will want to forget. But this won’t be the last we hear of Slovenia’s issues with the EU, for, as the MEPs have indicated, the battle is just beginning.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Hungary Ranked Among the World’s Safest Travel Destinations for 2025
G7 Leaders Fail to Reach Consensus on Key Global Issues
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Shock Within Iran’s Leadership: Khamenei’s Failed Plan to Launch 1,000 Missiles Against Israel
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Man Convicted of Fraud After Booking Over 120 Free Flights Posing as Flight Attendant
Iran Launches Extensive Missile Attack on Israel Following Israeli Strikes on Nuclear Sites
Beata Thunberg Rebrands as Beata Ernman Amidst Sister's Activism Controversy
Hungarian Parliament Approves Citizenship Suspension Law
Prime Minister Orbán Criticizes EU's Ukraine Accession Plans
Hungarian Delicacies Introduced to Japanese Market
Hungary's Industrial Output Rises Amid Battery Sector Slump
President Sulyok Celebrates 15 Years of Hungarian Unity Efforts
Hungary's Szeleczki Shines at World Judo Championships
Visegrád Construction Trends Diverge as Hungary Lags
Hungary Hosts National Quantum Technology Workshop
Hungarian Animation Featured at Annecy Festival
Israel Issues Ultimatum to Iran Over Potential Retaliation and Nuclear Facilities
UK and EU Reach New Economic Agreement
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
Trump to Iran: Make a Deal — Sign or Die
Operation "Like a Lion": Israel Strikes Iran in Unprecedented Offensive
Israel Launches 'Operation Rising Lion' Targeting Iranian Nuclear and Military Sites
UK and EU Reach Agreement on Gibraltar's Schengen Integration
Israeli Finance Minister Imposes Banking Penalties on Palestinians
U.S. Inflation Rises to 2.4% in May Amid Trade Tensions
Trump's Policies Prompt Decline in Chinese Student Enrollment in U.S.
Global Oceans Near Record Temperatures as CO₂ Levels Climb
Trump Announces U.S.-China Trade Deal Covering Rare Earths
Smuggled U.S. Fuel Funds Mexican Cartels Amid Crackdown
Austrian School Shooting Leaves Nine Dead in Graz
Bezos's Lavish Venice Wedding Sparks Local Protests
Europe Prepares for Historic Lunar Rover Landing
Italian Parents Seek Therapy Amid Lengthy School Holidays
British Fishing Vessel Seized by France Fined €30,000
Dutch Government Collapses Amid Migration Policy Dispute
UK Commits to 3.5% GDP Defence Spending Under NATO Pressure
Germany Moves to Expedite Migrant Deportations
US Urges UK to Raise Defence Spending to 5% of GDP
Israeli Forces Intercept Gaza-Bound Aid Vessel Carrying Greta Thunberg
IMF Warns of Severe Global Trade War Impacts on Emerging Markets
Low Turnout Jeopardizes Italy's Citizenship Reform Referendum
Transatlantic Interest Rate Divergence Widens as Trump Pressures Powell
EU Lawmaker Calls for Broader Exemptions in Supply Chain Legislation
France's Defense Spending Plans Threatened by High National Debt
European Small-Cap Stocks Outperform U.S. Rivals Amid Growth Revival
Switzerland Proposes $26 Billion Capital Increase for UBS
×