Hungary's contestation of EU values. A study of EU-Hungary relations between 2015 and 2021
Author
Bartus, Cintia
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2021
Submitted on
2021-05-26
Pages
73
Abstract
This thesis examines how and why Hungary has challenged the European Union’s core values between 2015 and 2021. Using an interpretive case study approach grounded in secondary sources (news reporting, NGO reports, official documents and speeches), it analyzes three pivotal episodes: Hungary’s rejection of EU refugee relocation in 2015, measures that constrained the Central European University in 2017, and the contentious 2020 negotiations on the EU budget and rule-of-law mechanism, including expanded rule-by-decree during the COVID-19 period. The study draws on norm contestation theory—distinguishing logics of appropriateness and consequence and engaging Carl Schmitt’s notion of the “enemy of the state”—alongside scholarship on norm development and robustness. It argues that the Hungarian government frames contestation as a defense of sovereignty and local values but, in practice, uses it to consolidate the ruling party’s political position, bolster conservative Christian-national narratives, and advance material interests. The analysis also suggests that limited and hard-to-enforce EU sanctions have allowed such contestation to persist. The thesis concludes by discussing whether this pattern may become entrenched in Hungary’s political order in the context of broader European debates on sovereignty and integration, and it offers recommendations for improved cooperation, common ground, and more open public debate between the EU and Hungary.
Denne afhandling undersøger, hvordan og hvorfor Ungarn udfordrer EU’s grundlæggende værdier i perioden 2015–2021. Med et fortolkende casestudie baseret på sekundære kilder (medier, NGO-rapporter, officielle dokumenter og taler) analyseres tre nøgleepisoder: Ungarns afvisning af EU’s flygtningefordeling i 2015, indgrebene mod Central European University i 2017 og de stridige forhandlinger om EU’s flerårige budget og retsstatsmekanisme i 2020, herunder udvidede regeringsdekreter under covid-19. Afhandlingen anvender normkontestation som teoretisk ramme, herunder skellet mellem egnetheds- og konsekvenslogikker samt Carl Schmitts begreb om statens fjende, suppleret af litteratur om normers udvikling og robusthed. Argumentet er, at normkontestation præsenteres af den ungarske regering som et suverænitets- og værdiforsvar, men i praksis tjener til at styrke den siddende ledelses politiske position, konsolidere konservativt-kristne nationale narrativer og fremme materielle interesser. Samtidig peger analysen på, at begrænsede og vanskeligt anvendelige EU-sanktionsredskaber bidrager til, at normbruddene kan fortsætte. Afslutningsvis diskuteres, om kontestation bliver et vedvarende træk i Ungarns politiske orden, i lyset af bredere europæiske debatter om suverænitet og integration, og der skitseres anbefalinger om bedre samarbejde, fælles grund og mere åben offentlig debat mellem EU og Ungarn.
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