Group of lawmakers calls on EU to strip Hungary of voting rights

By Kate Abnett

STRASBOURG (Reuters) - A group of 63 European Parliament lawmakers has asked the EU to withdraw Hungary's voting rights in the bloc, in response to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's recent visits to Moscow and Beijing.

Orban met U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump last week and earlier travelled to Ukraine, then Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin Moscow and Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, on a self-styled "peace mission" to end the war in Ukraine.

Hungary took over the rotating EU presidency this month, and is responsible for organising meetings of EU countries - collectively known to as the "council" of the EU - until Dec. 31.

The lawmakers said Orban had deliberately implied he was acting on behalf of the entire EU, despite not having the authority to do this.

"Prime Minister Orban has already caused significant damage by exploiting and abusing the role of the Council Presidency," said the letter, which was published on social media platform X.

"This requires real actions, such as suspending Hungary's voting rights in the Council, since practice has shown that mere verbal condemnations of this situation have no effect," the letter added.

Spokespeople for Hungary's representation to the EU did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the letter.

The letter was signed by lawmakers from numerous political groups in the EU assembly, including the centre-right European People's Party - the Parliament's biggest faction - plus the socialists, liberals, European Conservatives and Reformists, and Greens.

The lawmakers have no formal ability to strip Hungary of its voting rights, but seek to add political pressure on Brussels to take tougher action towards Budapest.

The European Commission said on Monday it would stop sending Commissioners to informal meetings organised by the Hungarian EU presidency, downgrading its participation to instead send civil servants.

Hungary's government responded by criticising the European Commission for "cherry picking" the institutions and countries it chooses to cooperate with.

(Reporting by Kate Abnett; Editing by Christina Fincher)