Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban accused US billionaire George Soros of "attacking" his country Wednesday as he defended a law that could close down a university founded by the investor. Orban made his defence in front of the European Parliament just hours after the EU launched legal action against Hungary over the legislation targeting the Central European University in Budapest.
"We are not as big and powerful as you are, and not as big as powerful as George Soros, the American financial speculator attacking Hungary," Orban told MEPs in Brussels, defending his law. Orban said Hungarian-born Soros "has destroyed the lives of millions of Europeans with his financial speculations" and "is an open enemy of the euro".
Yet despite this, Soros "is still warmly regarded here and warmly received at the highest level," he said, in an apparent reference to a meeting between the billionaire and European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker in Brussels on Thursday.
The latest feud with the EU marks a new low in the tense relations between Brussels and Budapest over the government's rights record. The EU has expressed deep concern over Hungarian plans to tighten government control over academic freedoms, migrants and nongovernmental organisations.
"Recent developments in Hungary have got many people worried in the EU but also in the outside world. We share those worries and concerns," said European Commission's Vice President Frans Timmermans, who also addressed the parliament session. Timmermans described the university as the "pearl in the crown" of post-communist Europe.
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