MASARYK UNIVERSITY, BRNO MASARYK UNIVERSITY MASTER THESIS 2018 Jeffrey van Dooren Faculty of Social Studies Department of International Relations and European Studies What is Viktor Orbán’s position towards the European Union? Master thesis for the course Thesis writing seminar Author: Jeffrey van Dooren Supervisor: Vratislav Havlík, Ph.D M.A. in European Politics II Year, III semester 2 3 This thesis is dedicated to my grandmother, Jenny Schepers-Kuik She passed away on 12th May 2015, which was the same day I got accepted in the European Politics master’s program. I still miss you every day and I wish you were there to witness how most of my dreams came through the last three years. These dreams came though thanks to Masaryk university. I want to specially thank my supervisor Vratislav Havlík. For his undying support and advise during this process. I also would like to thank Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetem, András Schweitzer and Sophie Hochrath. ELTE accepted me on an Erasmus scholarship, to do my research in Budapest. András Schweitzer provided me with the contacts of the specialists for my empirical chapter. Lastly, I would like to thank my girlfriend, Sophie Hochrath. We met during my first semester at Masaryk, while she was on Erasmus. We moved together to Budapest and there are no words to describe her support during my moments of doubt during this process. I mentioned that most of my dreams came though. I managed to do two internships the last Academic year. The first one was at the European Parliament. To the Dutch delegation of the Socialists & Democrats. The second and current one is at the embassy of the Netherlands to Albania. I set out three goals/ambitions during my gap year in 2015. I wanted to do a master abroad, and work one day at either the European Parliament or at a Dutch embassy. I would like to thank Masaryk for the possibility to follow these dreams. During this process I got fascinated by Hungarian politics. I hope you will enjoy my work and that you will better understand the political position of Viktor Orbán and the geopolitical climate in Hungary. 4 Abstract: What is the position of Viktor Orbán towards the European Union? Why is the Hungarian Prime Minister reacting in a certain manner towards the European Union? Is there a cultural explanation related to the Hungarian society? Are political decisions being made to please a certain voter's base? Or is it simply political opportunism? And if so, where do these motivations come from? It is necessary to understand the geopolitical position of Hungary within the European Union and the specific role of Viktor Orbán within. I want to understand and explain Viktor Orbán’s position towards the European Union. In order to do so, the following four research questions are formulated: A. What are the theoretical explanations of Viktor Orbán´s Eurosceptic policies? B. What are the motivations of Viktor Orbán’s Eurosceptic policies? C. Does the position of Viktor Orbán towards the EU change in time? D. Is there difference between Viktor Orbán´ and Fidesz´ positions towards the EU? Key Words: Viktor Orbán, European Politics, Hungary, European Union, Fidesz, Nationalism-Universalism Cleavage, Potential Bridge between East and West 5 Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 7 1.1 Research questions ....................................................................................................................... 8 1.2 Methodology ................................................................................................................................. 9 Chapter 2 Theoretical Framework .............................................................................................................. 13 2.1 Literature Review Hungarian Foreign policy ..................................................................................... 13 2.1.1 .Hungarian Foreign Policy toward the EU after 1990 ................................................................ 13 2.1.2 Hungarian Foreign Policy toward the EU after 1990 ................................................................. 16 Period 1999-2010 ................................................................................................................................ 16 2.1.3 Hungarian Foreign Policy toward the EU after 1990. ................................................................ 19 Period 2010-Recent ............................................................................................................................ 19 Chapter 3 Empirical Chapter ....................................................................................................................... 37 3.1 Theoretical Explanations ................................................................................................................... 37 3.1.1 Nationalism-Universalism Cleavage ........................................................................................... 37 3.1.2 The Bridge between East and West ........................................................................................... 43 3.2 What are the Motivations of Viktor Orbán ....................................................................................... 48 3.2.1 Pragmatism ................................................................................................................................ 48 3.2.2 Power ......................................................................................................................................... 53 3.2.3 Financial Gain ............................................................................................................................. 56 3.3 Does the Position of Viktor Orbán towards the EU change in Time? .............................................. 57 3.3.1 Losing the 2002 and 2006 parliamentary election is the reason for the change ...................... 57 3.3.2 The European Union and Hungary; An ongoing Cat and Mouse Game ..................................... 59 3.3.3 From Federation to Europe of Nations ...................................................................................... 63 3.4 The difference between Fidesz and Orbán ....................................................................................... 64 3.4.1 Lack of Freedom of Expression .................................................................................................. 64 3.4.2 Opportunism .............................................................................................................................. 66 Chapter 4 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................ 67 4.1 What are the Theoretical Explanations of Viktor Orbán´s Eurosceptic Policies? ............................. 67 4.2 What are the Motivations of Viktor Orbán? ..................................................................................... 69 4.3 Does the position of Viktor Orbán towards the EU change in time? ................................................ 70 4.4 Is there difference between Viktor Orban And Fidesz Position towards the European Union? ...... 71 4.5 Overall Conclusion: What is the Position of Viktor Orbán towards the European Union? .............. 72 References .................................................................................................................................................. 73 6 Chapter 1 Introduction The final chapter of Paul Lendvai’s Viktor Orbán Uber alles-Hungary at a dead end book covers Hungary Between Democracy and authoritarianism back in 2010. Mention the name Orbán to a Hungarian; they will be sure to express an opinion. This is not strange, considering that he has been a leading figure in Hungarian politics since the late years of communism. He has made an interesting transition however, from liberal student leader towards perceived autocrat. The political career of Orbán began in 1987 as a young protestor. He began to shift towards the right- wing spectra, adopting an intensifying national conservative ideology. Despite alienating Hungary from most of its neighbours with the controversial “Status Law”, the party sought European integration. His first cabinet had worked towards European integration; the country joined the European Union in 2004. After an eight year absence, Orbán and his party returned to power in 2010 and held an absolute majority. With this majority he has been able to change the Hungarian constitution. Besides the internal and controversial politics from within, Orbán has become the subject of debate outside Hungary as well. The relationship with the European Union has been everything but ideal since his takeover. The repayment of the IMF loan, the controversial media law, the critical stances during the migration crisis and the announcement to close the Central European University have stirred complete disbelief from Brussels. In May 2017 the European Parliament backed a resolution on the situation in Hungary. This rapport could eventually lead to the activation of Article 7 of the Lisbon Treaty. Article 7 is a procedural mechanism whereby the voting rights and representation of a member state in the European Council could be suspended for failing to maintain the values of membership as stipulated in Article 2 of the Lisbon Treaty1. 1 Article 7 Lisbon Treaty: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex:12012M007