Countries that previously supported, are now distancing themselves from the Hungarian Prime Minister following the "Nazi speech"

Viktor Orban said that Europeans should be careful not to become "nations of mixed races".

He also said, referring to the cut in gas consumption in EU countries in response to the Russian gas supply disruptions, that "the past has taught us that Germany knows how to do it"

Tali Goldstein

07/28/2022

Thursday, July 28, 2022, 9:50 a.m. Updated: 1:35 p.m.

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The public uproar following a controversial speech by the Hungarian Prime Minister continues in full force.

On Saturday, the Prime Minister said that the Europeans should be careful not to become "nations of mixed races".

He also joked about the gas chambers in Nazi Germany, and said, referring to the cut in gas consumption in EU countries in response to disruptions in the Russian gas supply, that "the past taught us that Germany knows how to do it."

The statements that Orban made in an annual speech to the members of the Hungarian minority in Romania immediately provoked public outrage.

His long-time adviser, the sociologist Jozha Hagdosh, resigned from her position following the speech.

"After such a speech, which contradicts all my basic values, I was left with no alternative," said Hagdosh, a Jew whose parents are Holocaust survivors, to Orban in her resignation letter published on the hvg.hu news website.

In a speech, Orban said that "there is a world where European peoples are mixed together with those who come from outside Europe. Now it is a world of mixed races... We are ready to mix with each other in our European homeland, but we do not want the opposite of a people of mixed races."

Hungary chose Russia's side.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Russian President Vladimir Putin (Photo: Reuters)

Hagdosh called Orban's speech "a pure Nazi text worthy even of Goebbels."

Josef Goebbels was the Nazi Minister of Propaganda.

She added that this is also the "racist" peak of "illiberal change" that is getting worse.

A spokesman for the administration denied the allegations and accused the "mainstream media elite" of "escalating two hard lines about immigration and assimilation."

Orban responded directly to the words of his former adviser, who accompanied him for twenty years, and wrote: "You are surely not serious when you accuse me of racism after 20 years of working together. God created all people in his image. That is why I cannot be racist."

He added that his government has adopted a "zero tolerance policy regarding anti-Semitism and racism".

This is the first time during Orban's terms as prime minister that an ally so close to him has resigned in protest of his political statements.

Although Hagdosh does not have much influence in the government or in the circle close to Orban,

A demonstration in Budapest against Orban's policy towards the gay community, 2021 (Photo: Reuters)

The International Auschwitz Committee for Holocaust Survivors demanded an immediate response to the speech, saying Orban's remarks were "stupid and dangerous."

The organization called on other EU leaders to "make it clear to the world that a leader like Orban has no future in Europe."

Orban, who rules Hungarian politics with an iron fist, was elected for the fourth time as prime minister in April.

But his government is becoming more and more isolated within the Union.

Hungary enjoys large financial subsidies from the European Union, despite concerns raised about Orbán's efforts to undermine an independent judiciary, a free press, the political opposition and civil society.

However, Brussels has signaled that it plans to take a tougher approach towards him in the future.

The union withheld some payments to the country from the recovery fund from the corona epidemic, and a court ruled earlier this year that the bloc can legally withhold more extensive subsidies if Hungary violates the rule of law.

The foreign minister of Romania, where a large minority of Hungarians lives, also condemned the statements.

The Vice President of the European Commission, Franz Timmermans tweeted that "Racism is a poisonous political invention".

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Elections in Hungary, April 2022 (Photo: Reuters)

Moreover, countries or leaders who in the past rushed to defend Orban, including the right-wing ruling party in Poland, did not come to his defense this time.

The Polish government, which in the past was an ally of Orban due to their shared view of the European Union, recently criticized the Hungarian leader's position regarding the war in Ukraine.

Poland is a big supporter of Ukraine, supplying it with heavy weapons and hosting millions of refugees from the country.

Orban, on the other hand, prefers to maintain close ties with Russia.

According to sources who spoke with The Washington Post, Hungary was even the only country in the Union that voted against the gas rationing plan agreed upon by the bloc in order to reduce dependence on Russian gas, which the Russian government is using as a weapon against the West in the conflict with Ukraine.

The Jewish community in Hungary condemned the speech.

The chief rabbi of Hungary, Robert Frolich, said that "there is only one creature on earth that walks on two legs, thinks, works, speaks and sometimes thinks: Homo sapiens - this is a unique race that cannot be divided."

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