Pal Attila Illes, a former Hungarian consul general in Poland and now an analyst at the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, told Poland's PAP news agency that Tisza leader Péter Magyar had already signaled that Warsaw would be the destination of his first foreign trip if he became prime minister.
“At the governmental level, a Tisza victory would automatically and quickly improve Polish-Hungarian relations,” Illes said.
At the same time, he cautioned that disagreements could still arise in the longer term, for example if Magyar, a former Orbán ally, were to take a tougher line on Ukraine because of the Hungarian minority living there, or continue Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s energy policy.
Illes said he saw little chance of a near-term improvement in relations between Orbán and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk if the current Hungarian leader wins another term.
“The mutual dislike is too strong,” he said, adding that any reset would require long-term political work, if both sides were willing to pursue it.
He argued that the roots of the dispute lie in sharply different geopolitical visions.
According to Illes, Tusk and Orbán once had very good personal relations, helped by shared interests including football, but their ties deteriorated after Tusk became president of the European Council and then collapsed over their opposing positions on Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Illes also said the issue was deepened by Hungary’s decision to grant asylum to politicians linked to Poland’s previous government, led by the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party.
He added that Orbán’s warm relationship with US President Donald Trump also stands in stark contrast to Tusk’s approach.
The analyst noted that election campaigning in Hungary was further heating the dispute. He said Hungarian politics had in some ways become an extension of Poland's domestic divide between the PiS party and Tusk’s Civic Coalition (KO).
Orbán openly backed Karol Nawrocki in Poland’s presidential campaign last year, while Magyar has developed closer ties with Tusk, Illes said.
Even so, he stressed that historical goodwill between the two countries remained strong.
He said that Hungary had always regarded Poland as the most important country in the region and that both the government and the opposition wanted good ties with Warsaw.
Illes added that political tensions had not prevented strong economic, cultural and academic links. Trade has grown in recent years, he said, while Polish literature remains one of the most widely read in Hungary, and Hungarian literature continues to attract a loyal readership in Poland.
Hungary votes on Sunday, April 12, in a parliamentary election that is widely seen as the toughest challenge to Orbán in 16 years.
Recent independent polls have shown Tisza, a center-right opposition party led by Magyar, ahead of the ruling Fidesz party.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP