France’s parliamentary election will not only influence the number of groups or representatives in the European Parliament but the future of the whole of Europe, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in an interview with public radio. Orbán said it was unprecedented in France for a right-wing party to make a breakthrough in a domestic election. The right, he added, had been cordoned off and excluded from French politics in recent decades, deemed unfit for cooperation by other parties. But they had broken through this cordon, Orbán said, “and if I’m right, not by a small but by a big margin — if we’re interpreting the first round correctly.” Such a momentous development in France would precipitate change “that will immediately affect the entire continent”, he said, adding that this would also influence ties between Hungary and France. In one possible scenario, the right wing in France may win to an extent that it can form a government, but a confused situation may also emerge if its victory did not turn out to be decisive, and this could also affect European politics, he said. Marine Le Pen’s party, he added, was “the biggest national group in the European Parliament … so it isn’t a matter of indifference how they decide their fate.”
Regarding the Patriots for Europe group, Orbán said a founding meeting will take place on July 8. Parties will gather that have already decided to join but have not yet announced their intention to do so, he added. Orbán reiterated that the force could possibly end up being the second largest grouping in the EP.