The European Union has placed human rights, democracy, and the rule of law firmly at the core of its structure, and so its willingness to defend those values is crucial to its credibility.
Faced with a deteriorating situation on these three fronts in Hungary, Brussels has failed to show the necessary resolve.
Unless it can marshal a stronger response, its failure is likely to do long-term damage in Budapest and to the European Union itself.
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Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.
Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.