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Prague – Czech Republic at the end of January sent a request to the Court of Justice of the European Union to enter into proceedings of the European Commission (EC) against Hungary as a secondary participant due to a law on the protection of national sovereignty. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated this today in response to a question from ČTK. The EC decided to sue Hungary last October because it believes the law violates EU law. The Hungarian parliament approved the bill in December of the year before last, according to the ruling party Fidesz, it is necessary to protect against foreign political interference.
The law, among other things, prohibits foreign funding of parties seeking votes in elections and introduces up to three-year prison sentences in this context. The regulation also envisages the creation of a sovereignty protection office to identify and address possible risks of foreign influence on politics. According to opponents, this is another part of a long-term plan to undemocratically suppress opposition.
The spokesperson of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs Daniel Drake confirmed to ČTK today that on January 30, Czech Republic sent a request to the EU Court to enter into proceedings as a secondary participant in support of the EC. “We have indications that the intervention is being seriously considered or that internal procedures for entering into the proceedings are already being completed by twelve other EU member states,” he added. (February 4)