Orbán declares war on ‘shadow army’ of foreign influence, slams EU

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has vowed to purge his country of those he claims serve foreign interests, targeting media outlets, NGOs, and politicians receiving international funding.

Speaking to thousands of supporters on Hungary’s national holiday commemorating the 1848 revolution, Orbán framed the European Union and a “liberal American empire” as modern-day oppressors.

“After today’s festive gathering comes the Easter cleaning. The bugs have overwintered,” he declared, promising to dismantle what he called a corrupt financial network influencing Hungary.

Orbán, in power since 2010, has used recent years’ March 15 celebrations to ramp up his rhetoric against Brussels, likening the EU’s influence to past imperial rule. He accused Brussels of forcing Hungary into the Russia-Ukraine war and dismissed Ukraine’s potential EU membership, declaring: “European Union, but without Ukraine.”