Hungary Opposition Policymaker Seeks More Accommodation With EU
(Bloomberg) -- Hungary’s opposition Tisza Party would end routine vetoes against European Union decisions, signaling a potential shift in one of the EU’s most contentious diplomatic stances, should it accede to power.
In a video posted online, the party’s new foreign policy chief said that under Tisza leadership Hungary would only seek to block EU decisions if core national interests are at stake.
Anita Orban, who was appointed Saturday, said her party supports Ukraine’s sovereignty but wouldn’t supply it with arms to defend itself against Russia. She also pledged to restore relations with Poland and stop protecting “political criminals.”
Prime Minister Viktor Orban has turned Hungary into an outlier within NATO and the EU, maintaining close ties with the Kremlin and repeatedly using the country’s veto power to dilute or delay EU positions on Russia, Ukraine and sanctions. Hungary has also increased its dependence on Russian energy imports even as most EU members moved to curb them.
Anita Orban, who isn’t related to the prime minister, is a longtime critic of Europe’s dependence on Russian energy. She served in his government as Hungary’s traveling ambassador for energy security from 2010 to 2015. Later she worked at US liquefied natural gas producers Cheniere Energy Inc. and Tellurian Inc., now owned by Woodside Energy Group Ltd., and most recently held senior roles at Vodafone Group Plc in London.
Her appointment follows Tisza leader Peter Magyar’s recent unveiling of a former Shell executive as his chief economic adviser, underscoring an effort to bolster the party’s credibility with seasoned technocrats.
Most pollsters show Magyar’s Tisza party ahead of Orban’s Fidesz as campaigning enters the final stretch before elections in April. Foreign policy has emerged as one of the clearest dividing lines between the parties, with Tisza positioning itself closer to the European mainstream.
(Retops with Tisza foreign policy chief’s priorities in first three graphs.)
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
