Putin's friend Orban may become president of the European Council: fortunately, only temporarily

President of the European Council Charles Michel has announced the possibility of his early resignation. The politician intends to run in the European Parliament elections to be held in June 2024.

He shared his plans in an interview with the Belgian newspaper De Standaard. It is noted that for this reason, the odious Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who is called a friend of Russian dictator Putin, may temporarily become president of the European Council.

According to Michel, he has decided to leave his current position and rejoin the Belgian liberal party Mouvement Réformateur (Reformist Movement) in the summer to take part in the European elections. He was the leader of this political force in 2011-2014 and 2019.

Thus, the 48-year-old politician will not finish his term as head of the European Council until the end of this year when his five-year mandate expires (Charles Michel was appointed to the post on December 1, 2019, and elected in June 2022 for another 2.5 years).

"In late June or early July, the European Council will be able to foresee this and decide on a successor," Charles Michel said.

He admitted that he wants to "serve wherever he can be useful" and that he has no other ambitions.

"I want to play an active role in the European debate and contribute to the promotion of the Europe 2030 project. This will require reforms," the politician said.

According to experts, the role of the head of the European Council usually goes to the leader of the state that currently holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union. In 2024, this period of time falls on the leadership of Hungary, whose prime minister is the scandalous Viktor Orban. However, the final decision on who exactly will hold the presidency must be made by the leaders of the EU member states.

As OBOZ.UA previously reported, at the end of 2023, Viktor Orban vetoed the EU's approval of aid to Ukraine. In response, the EU began to consider the possibility of depriving Hungary of its voting rights.

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