Thread by @tepsaeu

We're live 🔴 Our moderator Andrea Éltető is welcoming our participants to "European Solidarity and the #COVIDresponse: Hungary and the Czech Republic"

Follow the highlights along here!

/THREAD 🧵

This event is taking place as part of the pan-European book launches of "Solidarity in Action and the Future of Europe: Views from the Capitals", TEPSA's upcoming book edited by @MichaelKaeding (@unidue), @_PaulSchmidt (@oegfe), and @JohannesPollak (@WebsterVienna)

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Zdeněk Sychra, András Inotai, Norbert Szijártó, and András Bíró-Nagy are leading experts in European affairs, and contribute to the discussion on the basis of their expertise of the #solidarity situations in 🇭🇺 & 🇨🇿

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Zdeněk Sychra, Assistant Professor, Department of Politics and International Relations at @ZapadoceskaUni begins with his analysis of #solidarity in 🇨🇿

"It is not seen just as a tool to push EU integration further, but as an obstacle to certain issues in Czech-EU politics"

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"The reallocation of #refugees in particular was seen not as a moral responsibility but an imposition from the #Brussels elites"

- Zdeněk Sychra from @ZapadoceskaUni

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"#Solidarity is seen as a threat to national sovereignty, and is connected to most major issues: during the #pandemic, the role of the EU was belittled and accused of being incapable of effective action"

- Zdeněk Sychra from @ZapadoceskaUni

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"Solidarity has its limits"

- Zdeněk Sychra from @ZapadoceskaUni analyses this critique of the EU in the Czech Republic during #COVID19

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"There is a persistent Czech narrative of exceptionalism: a prevailing feeling that Czechs do not need help from others, and thus that others should expect no help from the Czechs"

- Zdeněk Sychra from @ZapadoceskaUni

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"Czech politics does not define clearly what is the common benefit of the EU as a whole: the nonexistent debate on the Czech vision of EU integration demonstrates this very well"

- Zdeněk Sychra from @ZapadoceskaUni

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"The legacy of #communism means #solidarity is often perceived by may Czechs negatively as a left-wing concept: in the eyes of many Czechs, solidarity is not fair"

- Zdeněk Sychra from @ZapadoceskaUni

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"A change in Czech politics could turn solidarity into a positive issue"

- Zdeněk Sychra from @ZapadoceskaUni concludes his presentation before we turn to #Hungary

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One week ago the bulletin of the Hungarian government was published, claiming #brussels was "stabbing Poland in the back"

In this contentious atmosphere between Hungary, Poland, and the wider EU, there is a certain ironic #EuropeanSolidarity between those who are anti-EU

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András Inotai begins his presentation on Hungary, #solidarity, and the #FutureofEurope

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"#ClimateChange, #Migration, #China, the #USA, and more issues still all require EU solidarity"

- András Inotai from Institute of World Economics, CERS

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"#solidarity has to be a win-win scenario, if not necessarily a balanced one: this balance is changing over time"

- András Inotai from Institute of World Economics, CERS

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"Some countries are not only #eurosceptic, but anti-EU - and some go even further to undermine the EU from the inside. They do this for short-sighted self-interest"

- András Inotai from Institute of World Economics, CERS

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"About 80% of the wider society sees the EU as the only future for Hungary, despite the government's stance, and not only because of investment, but because they see the EU as an 'upgrade' for Hungary"

- András Inotai from Institute of World Economics, CERS

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"The citizens' trust in the EU Institutions is much higher than their trust in the national system"

- András Inotai from Institute of World Economics, CERS on Hungarians' attitudes towards the #BrusselsBubble

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"To what extent should Qualified Majority Voting be used to build the #FutureofEurope?"

- András Inotai from Institute of World Economics, CERS, analyses the ways forward for the EU which would allow for dissent from the #eurosceptics

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"The Hungarian leadership used to support the immediate integration of Western Balkan countries into the EU; but this would create additional resistance to accession - these countries should avoid such alliances"

- András Inotai from Institute of World Economics, CERS

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Now we've heard from Zdeněk Sychra and András Inotai on the situations in #Czechia and #Hungary, we turn to Institute of World Economics, CERS's Norbert Szijártó for an analysis of the financial recovery of #COVID19

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"Initial measure did not serious impact Hungary's expenditure, but the second phase a few weeks later included a much more extensive expenditute package to support Hungarians in the pandemic"

- Norbert Szijártó from Institute of World Economics, CERS

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"The bittersweet relationship between the EU and Hungary is exemplified by a lack of adequate financial provision for Hungary, an inappropriate joint #vaccination policy resulting in the use of Chinese vaccines in Hungary"

- Norbert Szijártó from Institute of World Economics
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"Thus Hungary was given the opportunity to strengthen its eurosceptic position"

- Norbert Szijártó from Institute of World Economics

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On this note we turn to András Bíró-Nagy from the Institute for Political Science to speak about a different aspect of solidarity: "#solidarity cannot only be analysed in political and economic fields, but also in terms of how the EU Member States respect common rules"

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"Between 2004 and 2018 we can see a comparison between a pro- and anti-EU government in Hungary: in the aggregate numbers, a similar proportion of new laws of European origin were passed"

- András Bíró-Nagy from the Institute for Political Science

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"It would seem like Hungary has completely stopped its Europeanisation, but the data shows that beyond these headlines - serious as they are - there are hundred of other laws where the EU has an impact"

- András Bíró-Nagy from the Institute for Political Science

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"Based on the evaulation of the @EU_Commission, we analysed 🇭🇺🇨🇿🇵🇱🇸🇰 in terms of the implementation of country-specific EU recommendations: Poland is a MUCH bigger problem than Hungary"

- András Bíró-Nagy from the Institute for Political Science

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"Even in terms of infringement cases being brought to the European Court of Justice, there is almost no difference between the number between the pro-EU previous government and the #Orban regime"

- András Bíró-Nagy from the Institute for Political Science

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On that note our event turns to discussion of the remarks of our four speakers - if you have any questions now if your opportunity!

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On this note, and after a dynamic Q&A, our moderator Andrea Éltető closes proceedings

Thank you to our panellists Zdeněk Sychra, András Inotai, Norbert Szijártó, and András Bíró-Nagy, as well as to all who attended the event!

/ENDS

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