Orban, Viktor
Why Did Republicans Become So Extreme?
Many political analysts have spent years warning that the G.O.P. was becoming an extremist, anti-democratic party. Long before Republicans nominated Donald Trump for president, let alone before Trump refused to acknowledge electoral defeat, the congressional scholars Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein declared that the party had become “an insurgent outlier” that rejected “facts, evidence and […]
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In Ukraine, Some Ethnic Hungarians Feel Ambivalence About the War
TRANSCARPATHIA, Ukraine — Beneath dark clouds unleashing a summer rain, officials in a southwestern Ukrainian border village gathered silently, slowly hanging wreaths on branches to commemorate the destruction of a nation. The wreaths were not decorated with the yellow and blue of the Ukrainian flag; they were laced, instead, with the red, white and green […]
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Hooked on Cheap Oil, Hungary Resists an Embargo on Russia
BUDAPEST — Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary has fiercely resisted a proposed European embargo of Russian oil, saying it would devastate his country’s economy. Other potential casualties of such a ban would be things close to his heart: his populist campaign promises, and a financial gravy train for culture warriors in Europe and in […]
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With Ukraine Invasion, Hungary’s Leader Softens His Embrace of Russia
DEBRECEN, Hungary — The towering memorial, erected on the battlefield where the Russian imperial army routed Hungarian troops, mourns Russia’s 1849 victory over “brave homeland defenders.” It is a reminder of how, for centuries, the Hungarian psyche has been shaped and scarred by the specter of Russian domination. “There has been a constant fear of […]
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In Hungary, Viktor Orban Remakes an Election to His Liking
BUDAPEST — During the dark winter of the 2020 coronavirus wave, the Hungarian government set up a website so anxious residents could sign up for the news on the pandemic. For months, the system sent out updates about the virus, testing and where to get vaccinated. But last month, long after the vaccination drive had […]
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Putin’s War to Bring Ukraine to Heel Unites Eastern Europe in Alarm
PODBORSKO, Poland — Scattered around the forest in Poland like archaeological ruins, the crumbling concrete bunkers for decades stored Soviet nuclear warheads. Today, they store only memories — deeply painful for Poland, joyous for the Kremlin — of the vanished empire that President Vladimir V. Putin wants to rebuild, starting with his war in Ukraine. […]
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Facing Tough Election, Orban Turns to Putin for Support
BUDAPEST — Facing a tough election in two months, Hungary’s far-right populist prime minister, Viktor Orban, last week opened the centerpiece of a new state-funded museum district celebrating his country’s role as an anchor of European culture and identity. A shrine in the newly opened “House of Music” honors Hungarian champions of democracy routed by […]
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For Some of Ukraine’s Neighbors, ‘Defend Europe’ Has Another Meaning
WARSAW — As the United States ramped up warnings of a Russian attack, and as Western allies called for unity against aggression, the leaders of two NATO members bordering Ukraine headed for a gathering in Madrid over the weekend called “Defend Europe.” But instead of tackling the Russian threat to Europe’s eastern frontier, the meeting […]
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Eastern Europe Tests New Forms of Media Censorship
BELGRADE, Serbia — When Covid-19 reached Eastern Europe in the spring of 2020, a Serbian journalist reported a severe shortage of masks and other protective equipment. She was swiftly arrested, thrown in a windowless cell and charged with inciting panic. The journalist, Ana Lalic, was quickly released and even got a public apology from the […]
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