In one of the panel discussions at an economic forum held in Krynica in Poland on Tuesday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that we must never lose our judgement in the operation of the national economy: national influence in the key economic sectors is an important goal.
At the event, which was also attended by Jarosław Kaczyński, the President of Poland’s governing party, Mr. Orbán spoke about economic patriotism, saying that the representatives of international capital rightly argue that money has no smell, “but its owner does”.
The Prime Minister also said that in the coming years the stronger our conventional identities are, the more successful we shall be. He added that when the financial crisis erupted, the Hungarian banking sector was almost entirely in foreign hands, and indeed in more than one pair of foreign hands. Earlier the conventional wisdom had been that this is how things should be; though there is much truth in this, he said, when the crisis hit the first thing these banks did was stop their lending operations in Hungary. He added that it turned out that it does indeed matter who owns the money.
The Prime Minister pointed out that we must ensure the highest possible presence of national capital in four areas: the media, the banking sector, the energy sector and retailing. Apart from the last of these, the situation is as it should be. Speaking about Brexit, Mr. Orbán said that the British have said that what is happening in the EU is not good, and they are therefore leaving it. We should start thinking about what we think is not good in the EU, he said.
He said that European decision-makers, their immediate circles and leading media personalities have convinced themselves that the right and desirable path for Europe’s development is the abolition of conventional identities, because their time is past, and former “outdated” identities must be replaced with new ones: a European identity, in which these former identities are dissolved and lose their meaning. The British have said “no”: they wanted to remain British, he explained.
The Prime Minister believes that we have now reached a momentous point in time, because we believe that national and religious identities do have a role, and that there is no European identity which could replace them. New identities may emerge in addition to these, but not in place of these. The stronger our conventional identities are, the more successful we shall be in the years to come, he said. He added that therefore we must now declare the nation and Christianity to be values, and that one’s identity is something important, which must be fostered and protected.
Mr. Orbán pointed out that the migration crisis also confirms this line of thought, as those who are coming here have stronger identities than Europeans in general, and so they constitute increasingly large separate groups within society. He stressed that Central Europe is successful today, and it has an identity; therefore the restoration of the European spirit can be launched from here, so that eventually the whole of Europe can become successful and competitive. Hungary, however, is a country of only ten million, he said, and so now it is trying to convince Poland and the V4 to attempt to launch this process with it.
The Prime Minister stressed that Central European countries’ interests do not always coincide, but with regard to European politics there is an almost unprecedented relationship of trust here. The V4, he said, is a suitable platform for “ideas to set out on a European adventure tour”. He said that it is right for Central Europe to take the initiative, but for this we need a good action plan and a timetable which takes due account of the dates of elections being held throughout Europe.
Mr. Orbán also said that when the international press reports on Mr. Kaczyński’s approval of what he is doing in Hungary, it is grossly unfair and disproportionate: while his work in Hungary may have been somewhat more noticeable, the Prime Minister pointed out that Hungary has followed Poland, rather than the other way round.
He said that ever since the early eighties they have always closely observed what Poland was doing, and who their leaders were. Above all, respect, recognition and appreciation are due to Mr. Kaczyński, he said, adding that he was delighted that they could now sit down together in a public forum and express their mutual appreciation of one another.