The Hungarian and Ukrainian foreign ministers are slated to meet in Uzhorod in western Ukraine on January 29th.  Péter Szijjártó (R) and Dmytro Kuleba, May 2020. Photo by. Tamas Kovacs/MTI/PAP/EPA

The new Polish foreign minister called for a tougher approach towards Moscow after a series of Russian attacks on Ukraine. "We should respond to the latest onslaught on Ukraine in language that Putin understands - Radosław Sikorski wrote on X network on Wednesday morning.

In his first New Year's address, Czech President Petr Pavel criticized the ruling coalition for inadequate communication with the public. He praised the government's efforts in Prague to improve public finances but simultaneously called on Czech authorities to take specific actions to abandon the crown and join the eurozone.

Szczęśliwego Nowego Roku! Boldog új esztendőt!

The European Union is reportedly formulating a contingency strategy to extend financial support to Ukraine, currently facing Russian military aggression.

The first Lynx infantry fighting vehicle to be built in-country in Hungary has now rolled off the assembly line in Rheinmetall’s production, development and test facility for armoured fighting vehicles in Zalaegerszeg - the defence minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky said. 

Hungarians celebrate Christmas similarly to Poles. However, there are some significant differences. Children do not receive presents from Santa Claus; instead, in contrast to Poles, Hungarians do not share the Christmas wafer before sitting down for the Christmas Eve supper.

Czech police say 10 people have been killed and dozens injured in a shooting at a university in central Prague. In a post on X, formerly Twitter, the Czech president, Petr Pavel, says he is "shocked by the events" at the Charles University. "I would like to express deep sorrow and sincere condolences to the families and relatives of the victims of the shooting" - the Czech President wrote on the X network.

The National Bank of Hungary (Magyar Nemzeti Bank) reduced its base rate by 75bp to 10.75% at its December rate-setting meeting. Today's reduction of the base interest rate was already the third in 2023. The scale of the reduction was the same as at the previous rate-setting meeting in November.

The inflation rate in European Union countries fell by half a percentage point to 3.1% in November, marking the lowest level in nearly two years, according to the latest Eurostat report. An analysis of data from the 27 member states revealed that the highest rate of price growth was recorded in November in the Czech Republic (8% year on year). In Hungary, prices increased by 7.7% year on year. In Slovakia, inflation dropped to 6.9%. Meanwhile, in Poland, the pace of price growth remained at the…

On December 18, 1921 – three years after Poland regained independence and almost exactly two years after the establishment of the Polish Football Association – the Polish national football team played its first-ever official international match. The opponent was Hungary, a team considered one of the best in Europe at the time.

On Friday, the Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Radosław Sikorski, held talks with the Hungarian Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, as announced in a statement released by the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs on December 15.

Hungary has obstructed the European Union's endorsement of a financial assistance package for Ukraine consisting of 50 billion euros ($55 billion). Prime Minister Viktor Orbán vetoed financial aid just hours after allowing bloc to start membership talks with Kyiv.

In an official letter addressed to the European Commissioner for Budget and Administration, Johannes Hahn, on Thursday, Hungarian Finance Minister Mihály Varga reminded that although there has long been consensus that defending the borders of the European Union is a collective responsibility of member states, Hungary almost exclusively bears the financial burden of protecting its southern Schengen border.

European Union unlocked €10.2 billion ($11 billion) of funding for Hungary on Wednesday, December 13. The move on the eve of a key European summit could also have implications for Ukraine.

Polish new Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said that under his government Poland will reclaim its leading position in the EU and a strong position in the NATO by respecting the larger community. "Poland is and will remain a key, strong, sovereign element of the North Atlantic Alliance. It will be a loyal, stable, confident in its principles, strength, and significance ally of the United States. Poland will regain the position of a leader in the European Union.