The Prime Minister of Hungary Victor Orban He is known to categorically refuse to give the “green light” for Ukraine’s accession to the EU. But according to Politico, he now has on his side some unexpected allies who seem to support his view and share his concerns, including France and Greece.

In view of the meeting of EU leaders in Copenhagen today, October 1st, the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, He puts pressure on European leaders to find a way to bypass Hungary to integrate Kiev into the block. Indeed, the Portuguese politician has proposed to change the EU rules in order to allow official accession talks to begin after approval by a special majority of leaders, instead of unanimous consensus as needed to date. But Costa’s plan proves to be controversial.

Specifically, Costa’s idea is to introduce the vote by a special majority in these intermediate stages to join, so that progress can be made, even if a small number of countries oppose it. However, final inclusion in the EU will require unanimous approval.

While Orban is the EU leader who is closest to President Vladimir Putin and is the most hostile to Ukraine, there seems to be other leaders who are on his side with everyone having his own motivation, Politico notes.

Plan is facing reactions from several EU countries, including France, of the Netherlands and Greece, And it is unlikely to receive widespread approval at the Denmark Summit, according to Politico three EU diplomats and one French presidency official who wanted to maintain their anonymity.

The concern between these countries is that by changing the rules of integration, They will also limit their own ability to block the integration nominations They consider problematic, the same sources said, just as the Bulgarians want to be able to set boundaries in Northern Macedonia, the Croats blocking Serbia and the Greeks showing that they can continue to veto Turkey.

According to a senior EU official, Costa’s proposal will be put on the table in Copenhagen today Wednesday, along with another proposal for the use of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine. “No leader to date has responded with a general” no “to this idea,” said a senior official, referring to Costa’s proposal for a change in the rule.

“We are not convinced of changing the rules of the game because this is suggested,” said another EU senior diplomat who also wanted to maintain his anonymity. “If you apply a special majority vote [για να προωθήσετε τη διαδικασία ένταξης]there is a very high risk of the process of politicizing it, “he added.

An even greater challenge is that in order for the rules to change, all 27 Member States, including Hungary, should agree, but which does not seem to be possible at the moment.

The unexpected Allies of Orban

The effort now meets the opposition of leaders who consider their veto as deeply connected to their national sovereigntycomments Politico.

As one of the examples reports the Greece which has long been opposed to Turkey’s candidacy for EU accession, considering security threat. Athens is based on its veto as a way to guarantee that Ankara will never join the EU – even if Turkey’s candidacy has been legally suspended.

“In this proposal we are very skeptical,” said a Greek official in Politico, referring to the proposal to amend Costa’s rules.

The Paris has also historically opposed Turkey’s integration into the block, with Macron To tell Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan just in 2018 that there was no chance of Ankara’s candidacy.

The same applies to Bulgaria, which wants to prevent the entry of Northern Macedonia into the block or Croatia, which has historically opposed the integration of Serbia.

“Obviously the Hungarians are blocking the Ukrainians,” the EU diplomat said.

“But it’s not just that. The Bulgarians want to be able to block the North Macedonians, the Croats want to be able to control the Serbs, Greece and Cyprus do not want Turkey to come closer to the EU while Greece would also like to have its mind in Albania, “he concluded.