Orban Is Losing Friends as Poland Gives Him the Cold Shoulder
- Poland has reduced interaction with Hungary to a bare minimum
- Orban still prizes ‘mutual defense’ partnership with Warsaw
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The steady friendship between Hungary and Poland, who for years gave each other cover as they defied the European Union over the rule of law, has frozen over since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The rift risks weakening Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the champion of “illiberal democracy” who has waged a bitter fight with EU leaders over a bloc-wide Russian oil embargo, the erosion of independent judiciaries and media freedoms. Without his line to Warsaw, Orban’s effort at an alliance against Brussels is fading.