Hungarian PM Orban: ‘The Islamization of Europe Is Real’

In a powerful address this week, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary’s “fiercest opponents” do not come from within but from abroad, and that Europe is falling victim to “Islamization.”

In his annual address to the Civic Picnic in Kötcse over the weekend, Orbán reiterated his opposition to heavy-handed outside influence in Hungarian affairs, as well as his conviction that Europeans have not yet come to grips with the real threat posed by Islam.

Citing studies which suggest that more than 60 million migrants will depart from Africa towards Europe during the next 20 years, increasing Western Europe’s Islamic population to above 20 percent by 2030, Orbán stated: “The Islamization of Europe is real,” whereas in China or the United States “it doesn’t stand a chance.”

Orbán has vigorously opposed the European Union’s imposition of migrant quotas on individual member states, insisting that such questions are matters of national sovereignty and must be decided by each country and its people.

This past June, Orbán expressed his opposition to transferring any further decision-making authority to Brussels, especially regarding areas that touch directly on Hungarian sovereignty, such as immigration, the fixing of taxes and wages, and Hungary’s border fence.

In his critique of “the Brussels bureaucrats,” he insisted that he is not “anti-Europe” but wishes merely to halt the EU’s creeping arrogation of further powers to itself and to maintain the current relationship as it is.

“So when we say, ‘Stop, no further,’ we’re simply defending the status quo,” he said.

“Hungarian voters have made it clear that they don’t wish to delegate this power to Brussels, and we wish to decide on who we should live alongside,” he added.

In July, the Prime Minister claimed that the European Union has embraced migration plans designed by left-wing billionaire George Soros to bring in a million migrants per year.

According to Orbán, many European leaders agree with Hungary’s policy on migration but are afraid to say so publicly. He also said that due to the recent surge of migration into Italy, the southern European nation may soon join Hungary and others in looking to secure their national borders.

In this weekend’s address, Orbán played up Hungary’s achievements in the years since he took office, asserting that “thanks to the achievements of the last seven years, Hungary plays a central role in the region,” something it hadn’t done since 1920.

According to the Hungarian government website, the Orbán administration has turned a struggling Hungary around by “diminishing unemployment to record lows, stabilizing the economy, slashing debt, supporting families, and protecting our borders,” all of which “contributes to Hungary’s greater stature in the region.”

Follow Thomas D. Williams on Twitter  Follow @tdwilliamsrome