Kövér called it “very important” to “send a unanimous message to Brussels” that it is “up to the Hungarians only to decide with whom they want to live in the same country”. The EU will have to observe the outcome of the Hungarian referendum “if it considers itself democratic”, Kövér added.

The house speaker repeated the government’s position that the migration crisis should be handled outside the community’s borders, and said that “real refugees” and economic migrants should be treated differently.

Republished with permission of Hungary Matters, MTI’s daily newsletter.