Europe | Charlemagne

Viktor Orban solidifies his credentials as the EU’s pantomime villain

The Hungarian prime minister’s “peace mission” to Russia has peeved Europeans 

The illustration humorously parodies James Bond's iconic gun barrel sequence. Viktor Orbán wears a tuxedo jacket and bow tie, but sports star-patterned boxer shorts and holds a colorful water gun.
Photograph: Peter Schrank

Europeans, with their art-house sensibilities, can rarely match the dramatic heights coming out of Hollywood. At last the action blockbuster genre has crossed the Atlantic, in a series of short films released on social media in recent days. Their unlikely star is one Viktor Orban. Set to rousing music the producers of “Top Gun” might recognise, the clips feature the portly Hungarian prime minister as a latter-day Jason Bourne, striding decisively from motorcade to conference table, then back to his motorcade. Rapid-fire shots leave no doubt as to who is in charge. What the videos lack in terms of explosions and fight scenes they make up for with plenty of world leaders’ hands manfully shaken, documents assertively signed and platitudes emphatically uttered. The impossible mission having been completed, our Hungarian saviour stares into the distance, no doubt ready for a sequel.

Explore more

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Lights! Camera! Diplomatic blundering!”

From the July 13th 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

More from Europe

The “Trumpnado”, a wave shaped like Donald Trump's profile, crushing a boat with a European flag.

Can the good ship Europe weather the Trumpnado?

Tossed by political storms, the continent must dodge a new threat

Demonstrators march, shouting slogans against tourists in Barcelona

Spain’s proposed house tax on foreigners will not fix its shortage

Pedro Sánchez will need the opposition’s help to increase supply


Men from Ukraine’s 155th army brigade

A French-sponsored Ukrainian army brigade has been badly botched

The scandal reveals serious weaknesses in Ukraine’s military command


A TV dramatisation of Mussolini’s life inflames Italy

With Giorgia Meloni in power, the fascist past is more relevant than ever

France’s new prime minister is trying to court the left

François Bayrou gambles with Emmanuel Macron’s economic legacy

How the AfD got its swagger back

Germany’s hard-right party is gaining support even as it radicalises