German Chancellor Olaf Scholz convinced Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to leave the room where the bloc’s leaders were voting on whether to open negotiations with Ukraine about joining the EU, he confirmed to reporters on Saturday, admitting the controversial tactic could not serve as a “universal solution.”
Scholz had told Orban “he should consider leaving the room briefly,” perhaps to “go grab a coffee outside” as negotiations over Ukraine’s accession to the EU dragged into a third hour in Brussels on Thursday, according to Politico. The absence of the Hungarian prime minister, a staunch opponent of EU membership for the nation he has described as “one of the most corrupt countries in the world,” allowed the bloc’s remaining members to approve the motion with the appearance of unanimity.
While some criticized what they warned could set a dangerous precedent for moving forward on critical decisions without the backing of all EU members, inside sources described Scholz’s face-saving tactic to Politico as “pre-agreed” and argued it had been deployed in a “constructive manner.”
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