European country declares EU ‘bigger threat’ than Russia

The EU, overseen by Ursula von der Leyen, has been described as a 'bigger threat' than Russia (Image: Getty)

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has declared the European Union (EU) a bigger threat than Vladimir Putin's Russia as his nationalist party gears up for spring elections. Mr Orban, who has transformed the central European country into a so-called "illiberal democracy" during his 16 years in power, targeted the bloc in a speech on Saturday.

He compared the EU to the repressive Soviet regime that dominated Hungary until 1989 and dismissed the belief of many of his counterparts on the continent that Putin's authoritarian regime poses the biggest threat to future security. "We must get used to the idea that those who love freedom should not fear the East, but Brussels," he told supporters. "Fear-mongering about Putin is primitive and unserious. Brussels, however, is a palpable reality and a source of imminent danger."

Viktor Orban said fear mongering about Vladimir Putin was 'unserious' (Image: Getty)

He has also rewritten the Hungarian constitution to reduce checks and balances, increased governmental oversight of the judiciary and severely restricted the country's free press and academic freedoms.

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Orban has opposed all military aid to Ukraine since Russia's illegal invasion (Image: Getty)

While he may be something of a pariah on the continent, Orban's hardline approach to issues such as migration have won him the approval of US President Donald Trump, who received a nod in the Hungarian leader's address this weekend.

He praised Mr Trump for "rebelling against the liberals' global-scale business, media and political network", which he attributed to "improving our chances" of sweeping to victory.