Hungarian Foreign Minister says EU member states oppose enlargement behind closed doors

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó addressed the issue of European Union enlargement, emphasizing the presence of significant hypocrisy surrounding the matter.

“When it comes to the enlargement of the European Union, there’s a big, big, big hypocrisy in the room,” Szijjártó said during a panel discussion held within the framework of the “Yerevan Dialogue” forum.

“Why? Because the majority of the EU member states say totally different things in front of public than behind closed doors. In front of public, they are in favor of enlargement. When we are behind closed doors, they bring forward a long list of obstacles why enlargement cannot take place.

Look at the poor Montenegrins. I mean Montenegro is a country which cannot endanger European Union, neither with size nor with population.

A country which is already a member of the Eurozone, a country which is already a member of NATO. Why we don't accept Montenegro as a member of the European Union? Why we don't accept Serbia as a member of the European Union? Why we don't do so with North Macedonia? The countries of the Western Balkans have been in the waiting room for an average of 15 years now. So what kind of pro-enlargement policy we are speaking about? Keeping these countries 15 years in line,’’ the Hungarian FM said.