By UME
“The Visegrád countries suffer from spectacular discrimination in the European Union, and if they do not act stronger and united, this situation will not change,” wrote Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in his reply to Mikuláš Dzurinda, the former Prime Minister of Slovakia. Orbán stressed that Hungarians and Slovaks deserve better than that.
In his letter published by Samizdat 7, Viktor Orbán reacted to the rejection of his proposal by Mikuláš Dzurinda in his interview with Postoj.sk ; Orbán had suggested that the V4 countries should strive to transform the European Union, which revolves around the Franco-German axis, into a Franco-German V4 trio. Dzurinda argues that the proposal would only intensify the internal fragmentation of the European Union, not unite it, but rather divide it. In response, Viktor Orbán said that he thought the question was a practical matter.
The Hungarian Prime Minister wrote in his reply:
“It is a fact that the V4 countries have not succeeded in properly asserting their interests within the Union. The fact is that we Central Europeans suffer from spectacular discrimination. I claim that this situation will not change if we do not appear stronger and united. “
Orbán explained that the current structure of the internal market means that, according to the 2016 figures, a French citizen has an additional income of € 1,074 per year, a German € 1,046, a Slovak € 537 and a Hungarian € 408. Furthermore, if we compare the money that flows through EU transfers to the V4 countries with the profit and dividend income that we export, we can see how we suffer heavy losses. “The difference is 80 percent for Hungary and more than 90 percent for Slovakia,” declared the Prime Minister.
The disproportionate nature of the centrally administered EU programs is not only deplorable, but shameful.
Orbán also pointed out that the countries that joined the EU in 2004 received 5.1 percent of the funding, while their population represents more than 20 percent of the EU’s population. Our proposals to correct the geographical imbalance have always been rejected.
Orbán also pointed out that the posting of workers directive had been rewritten to the detriment of the V4.
“The first mobility package put our freight forwarders at a disadvantage in an injurious and offensive manner. And I haven’t even mentioned the brain drain, the mandatory distribution quotas for migrants, and the double standards that are being used against us.
“Dear Mikuláš, shouldn’t we start behaving like a Member State on an equal footing with the West? Isn’t it time we organized and stood up for our interests? Why should we continue to be the EU’s scapegoat? Hungarians and Slovaks deserve better than that, ”Orbán concluded.
Source: Magyar Nemzet