EU considers stripping Hungary of voting rights over obstruction of Ukraine support

Hungary’s persistent attempts to undermine EU efforts in support of Ukraine have pushed member states to seriously consider invoking Article 7 of the EU treaty — the bloc’s most severe disciplinary tool, which could strip Budapest of its voting rights, The Guardian reports.

Tensions are escalating between the European Union and Hungary as Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government continues to obstruct key decisions aimed at aiding Ukraine. Now, EU leaders are contemplating the use of Article 7 of the EU treaty, which, if fully enacted, would suspend Hungary’s voting rights within the bloc.

Although the move remains in its early stages and faces significant political hurdles — including the requirement of unanimity among the remaining 26 EU member states — the mood in Brussels has shifted. Diplomats are increasingly frustrated with Hungary’s pattern of behavior, which includes repeated vetoes of joint statements, sanctions packages, and military aid funding for Ukraine.

The latest flashpoint has been Hungary’s nationwide propaganda campaign against Ukraine’s EU membership. Billboards have appeared across the country featuring Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy alongside EU leaders Ursula von der Leyen and Manfred Weber, framed as villains in a government-led campaign. Ballot papers sent to Hungarian citizens ask: “Do you support Ukraine becoming a member of the EU?” — a referendum widely seen as an attempt to bolster Orbán’s anti-Ukraine stance.

Orbán recently claimed that Ukraine’s membership would mean “we would have to spend all Hungary’s money on Ukraine,” stoking fears with unverified claims that Ukrainian workers would steal Hungarian jobs and spread disease.

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Hungary has obstructed or delayed key EU actions, including vetoing a €6 billion aid package to reimburse countries arming Kyiv, and refusing to endorse several joint declarations supporting Ukraine. Most recently, Hungary’s potential veto of sanctions renewal — including the freezing of €210 billion in Russian central bank assets — has raised alarms across the bloc, with the current measures due to expire on July 31.

“If they felt they had the backing of the US, they would block,” one senior EU official told The Guardian. “It would be huge: basically, it would put them not literally but virtually outside the union.”

The idea of removing Hungary’s voting rights has lingered since 2018, when the European Parliament first triggered Article 7 proceedings over concerns about the erosion of judicial independence. But political hesitancy and protective alliances, such as support from Poland’s previous government, stalled momentum. Now, with Slovakia’s populist Prime Minister Robert Fico possibly replacing Poland as Orbán’s ally, the calculus is shifting again.

Tineke Strik, a Dutch MEP leading the European Parliament’s oversight of Hungary’s rule of law situation, said “Member states really are getting fed up with Orbán,” noting that 19 governments are reportedly open to escalating Article 7 measures, though they lack consensus on a strategy.

Former EU Commissioner László Andor emphasized that while Hungary’s anti-EU stance isn't new, “there are many more emotions now” because Orbán’s government is obstructing issues “which the majority of EU countries consider of vital importance.”

Whether the EU will ultimately act remains uncertain, but the growing frustration is palpable — and the stakes are higher than ever as the bloc tries to maintain unity in the face of Russia’s war against Ukraine.

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