Hungary's Election Concludes, EU Aims to Accelerate Reform of Consensus Decision-Making Mechanism

AI Summary (NQ-processed)

Following the defeat of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the parliamentary election to political newcomer Peter Magyar, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen urged EU member states to seize the opportunity to reform EU foreign policy and transition to a Qualified Majority Voting (QMV) system. Orban's government, which had held power for 16 years, had previously blocked EU proposals, including aid to Ukraine and sanctions against Russia, under the current unanimous consensus mechanism. The EU aims to overcome such systemic obstructions. In December last year, EU leaders agreed to provide 90 billion euros in loans to Ukraine between 2026 and 2027, but this has been stalled due to Hungary's opposition. The EU's 20th round of sanctions against Russia is also under discussion due to Hungarian opposition.