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PaperclipPerfector  7d ago (text post)   173 thread views

Transnational Thursday for April 9, 2026

Transnational Thursday is a thread for people to discuss international news, foreign policy or international relations history. Feel free as well to drop in with coverage of countries you’re interested in, talk about ongoing dynamics like the wars in Israel or Ukraine, or even just whatever you’re reading.

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Hungary to stick with veto on EU Israel sanctions following Orban election defeat

Highlighting some parts from this news article:

Hungary's likely next prime minister, Peter Magyar, on Monday said that he would block proposals for the European Union to sanction Israel in one of the few policy positions aligned with those of outgoing nationalist leader, Viktor Orban.[...] Cautioning that he did not want to “rush ahead” in deciding how Budapest should position itself in EU decisions, he added that “Hungary will continue to block EU decisions regarding Israel”.

In a post on X, Mr Netanyahu's office said he extended his “deep appreciation” for Mr Orban, “who stood firmly by Israel's side in the face of unjust international vilification”.[...] Under Mr Orban, Hungary angered EU states by persistently vetoing aid packages to Ukraine, but also sanctions against Israel that require unanimous support. However, consensus among EU states on sanctioning Israel is far weaker than backing for Ukraine, with major states including Germany, Italy and France reluctant to take punitive measures.

More recently, the EU's foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas voiced frustration at Hungary for opposing a package of sanctions against violent Israeli settlers in the occupied territories. “We don't do what the majority wants, but actually we are doing what this one country wants,” Ms Kallas said in February, without naming Hungary.

From another article:

Certain statements condemning Israeli actions — such as high-casualty military strikes during its war with Hamas in Gaza — that the bloc sought to issue on behalf of all 27 countries were often blocked by Hungary, forcing EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas to issue them in her name alone, the official explained.

On substantive policy, however, Hungary’s role is narrower.

The only concrete EU measure that Hungary alone has blocked is a package of sanctions targeting violent West Bank settlers and organizations that support them.

Kallas has repeatedly stated that 26 countries have approved the sanctions measure, and it is widely understood that Hungary is the single country blocking it. Other proposed measures against Israel, such as suspending trade preferences, lack sufficient support regardless of Hungary’s position.

I'd comment on this from a culture war angle because the issue here appears to be largely symbolic, and I think culture wars are largely about symbols and gestures.

Regarding the legacy of anti-Semitism in Hungary and the long-term effect it has had on the attitudes of local liberals towards Israel, I offered a summary of my own interpretation here before so I won't repeat myself. What I'd add here is that the self-declared right-wing conservative ruling party that is alluded to in these articles which has been in power for 16 years has wide opposition, as evidenced by its recent decisive defeat in national elections. And the opposition does not only include the local version of the Blue Tribe (to the extent that they exist), but we can surely say that every local liberal leftist (and every neoliberal for that matter) supports the opposition.

But it seems that the issue of relations with Israel may become a source of internal division for them, and declarations such as the ones quoted above are undoubtedly adding fuel to it. This isn't that visible now but I'm sure it will be visible down the line. Observing the former satellite states of the USSR, I'd say the overall influence of the Israel lobby is maybe nowhere else as strong as in Hungary, and it usually asserts cultural influence through sympathetic liberals in important cultural positions. (Again, please see my comment I mentioned above and another down further down in the same chain for more commentary.)

The seemingly obvious reason this has now been shifting for some time is that local middle-class urban young liberals, the most vocal opponents of the now-ousted government, are increasingly acculturated in similarly aligned US online echo chambers and cultural spheres (subreddits, online news sites, vloggers, forums etc.), which in turn are increasingly dominated by a vehemently anti-Zionist tendency. And I think they will increasingly crowd out local older, less online and more Zionist liberals.

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