Strasbourg, 9 October 2024 (dpa/MIA) - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen harshly criticized Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in the European Parliament on Wednesday, as Orbán held his hard line on migration into the bloc.

Taking aim at Orbán's approach to migration, von der Leyen asked the Hungarian premier why he released early more than a thousand convicted people smugglers and human traffickers.

"This is not fighting illegal migration in Europe," von der Leyen said in her speech. "This is just throwing problems over your neighbour's fence."

Orbán was in the French city of Strasbourg to address to the EU legislature and outline the priorities of the Hungarian EU Council presidency.

The Hungarian prime minister called for regular summits to address migration and for asylum applications to be administrated in regions outside of the European Union.

"We can only allow those into the territory of the EU who previously receive authorization to do so," he said, according to the parliament's translation. "Any other solutions are, quite frankly, an illusion."

Budapest has frequently clashed with EU institutions over the alleged misuse of EU funds and rule of law issues. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has fined Hungary millions for breaches of EU law.

Hungary, viewed as close to Russia, has also been left isolated over the repeated blockade of EU policies in support of Ukraine.

Multiple European Parliament group leaders from across the EU legislature criticized Orbán directly for his government's EU policy, closeness to Russia, and allegations of corruption.

Von der Leyen also criticized Hungary's policy of issuing visas to Russian nationals without more thorough background checks compared to other nationals.

Photo: screenshot