December 20, 2025 – Short News

Unacceptable in the heart of Europe – Why Hungary under Orbán has no place in the EU!!

“It is not entirely clear who attacked whom.” This sentence, spoken by Viktor Orbán about Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, is not a diplomatic misstep. It is a deliberate refusal to acknowledge reality. Russian troops crossed the Ukrainian border on February 24, 2022, bombed cities, massacred civilians, abducted children. There is nothing unclear about this. Anyone who casts doubt here is rejecting facts and the fundamental principles on which Europe is built. That this stance is shameful and painful for many people in Hungary itself is beyond question. But political responsibility is not measured by sympathy for one’s own population, it is measured by the actions of the government. And those actions have been clear for years. Orbán does not stand with Europe. He repeatedly chooses to protect authoritarian power interests and to relativize Moscow’s actions. Anyone who linguistically blurs a war of aggression becomes an accomplice to the lie.

The European Union is not a loose economic club where one can simply pick benefits at will. It is a community of values. Anyone who systematically undermines press freedom, politically controls courts, pressures minorities and then refuses, at the decisive moment, to clearly name aggression, leaves this common ground. Not symbolically, but in reality. Hungary under Orbán has long stood outside what defines the EU. This is not about punishment out of spite or moral superiority. It is about credibility. How can Europe credibly defend international law when a member state openly questions an aggression that is fully documented? How are sanctions, aid and diplomatic positions supposed to be taken seriously when a head of government inside the Union makes Moscow’s version socially acceptable?

Orbán’s course is not an unfortunate detour, but a conscious decision. He blocks European assistance, undermines joint decisions and instrumentalizes national sovereignty as a shield for political loyalty to the Kremlin. This is not diversity of opinion, it is sabotage from within. The question therefore is no longer whether Hungary is isolated, but how long the EU is willing to tolerate this situation. Anyone who does not accept the basic rules cannot permanently claim their benefits. Excluding Hungary would not be an act of hostility toward its people, but a necessary consequence toward a government that has consciously positioned itself against Europe. Many Hungarians deserve something different from this policy. They deserve a government that does not turn their country into a safe haven for authoritarian interests. And yes, it would be good for Europe if this Kremlin loyal administrator were voted out at the next elections. Not out of spite, but because Europe needs clarity, not the relativization of war, murder and destruction within its own ranks.

Immunity instead of accountability – Judge reviews Trump’s defense strategy over the Capitol attack

Trump’s lawyers have asked a federal court to shield him from civil lawsuits related to the attack on the Capitol. According to their argument, his role as president at the time grants him immunity from claims alleging that he deliberately incited the mob. At the center is the attack of January 6, 2021, which sought to prevent Congress from certifying the election result. Several Democratic members of Congress sued Trump and close allies over the events. The presiding federal judge, Amit Mehta, heard arguments from both sides on Friday but did not issue an immediate ruling. The plaintiffs emphasized that the case is not about political rhetoric, but about concrete actions. The fundamental question once again is whether and to what extent a former president can be held civilly accountable after leaving office.

UN warns of escalation – Guterres urges restraint by the United States and Venezuela

Amid growing tensions between the United States and Venezuela, UN Secretary General António Guterres has urgently called for de escalation. The situation is obviously very tense, he said on Friday at UN headquarters in New York. That is precisely why the UN has consistently appealed for restraint, dialogue and full respect for international law. One trigger was a direct phone call last week from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to Guterres. The Secretary General reiterated that all United Nations member states are obliged to respect international law. Deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq explicitly referred to the UN Charter, which prohibits the use of force. All 193 member states, including the United States and Venezuela, are required to resolve conflicts exclusively by peaceful means. The UN is seeking to prevent further political and military escalation.

A cultural institution is renamed – and loses its dignity

With the renaming of the Kennedy Center, no cultural value has been added, but a political signal has been sent. A venue that should stand for art, openness and intellectual freedom now bears a name that has nothing to do with that mission. Donald J. Trump is demonstratively placed alongside John F. Kennedy, as if very different ideas of responsibility, public service and power could simply be merged. Accompanied by cheap, grandiose music, the move feels like a poor performance rather than an act of remembrance. The Kennedy Center is not strengthened by this, but instrumentalized. Culture becomes a vehicle for self promotion. What remains is a sad impression and the sense that something has been taken from this place that cannot easily be replaced.

Retaliation from the air – United States strikes ISIS positions in Syria

Following the deadly attack on two US soldiers and an American interpreter, the United States has carried out extensive airstrikes against ISIS targets in Syria. According to multiple government sources, US forces hit dozens of positions across central Syria. Fighter jets, attack helicopters and artillery were used, with more than 70 targets struck. Among the aircraft deployed were F 15s, A 10 Warthogs, Apache helicopters and F 16s from Jordan. US Central Command described the operation as a massive, targeted strike using more than 100 precision munitions against known ISIS infrastructure. The operation followed an ambush near Palmyra in which a lone ISIS gunman killed the three Americans and wounded additional National Guard members. Donald Trump had previously announced a tough response. Defense Secretary and former Fox News host Pete Hegseth spoke of retaliation with overwhelming force. The mission is called Operation Hawkeye Strike. Since the attack, further operations in Syria and Iraq have reportedly resulted in dozens of suspected terrorists killed or detained.

Permanent presence instead of exception – Trump’s operation in Washington continues to target migrants

Four months after the launch of a large scale security operation in Washington, migrants continue to be targeted by authorities. According to official figures reviewed by the Associated Press, roughly one third of more than 7,500 arrests were related to immigration violations. Activists and affected individuals report frequent, intimidating raids that shape daily life and create fear. A lawsuit alleges repeated unlawful actions, including arrests without valid warrants. Although a federal judge recently halted widespread arrests without warrants, there is no indication that the operation will end. The heavy law enforcement presence remains, as does concern that immigration enforcement will continue. The Republican administration under Donald Trump defends the operation as a crime fighting measure and calls it a clear success. For many affected people, however, the state of exception has become the new normal.

Pickup as a weapon – An ICE operation that crosses every line

What can be seen in the images from Rialto, California, cannot be glossed over. A man is running quickly on foot, unarmed, when an officer from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the U.S. Border Patrol accelerates a pickup truck and drives directly at him. No distance, no braking, no attempt to evade. At the very last moment, the man twists his body aside, is still struck, falls, rolls across the asphalt, and gets back up. Seconds later, he is surrounded by multiple officers and detained. There were no weapons, no apparent danger, no moment that would have justified such an operation and not even an arrest warrant. A vehicle was deliberately used as a means to stop a person against whom there was nothing on record. That is precisely why the Rialto Police Department is now also investigating the incident. This case starkly shows how far some operations have drifted from law, proportionality, and responsibility. Anyone who acts this way knowingly accepts the risk of severe injury or death.

Such cases are not isolated incidents but part of a pattern that increasingly relies on intimidation and force. That makes concrete results all the more important. On the same day, eight people were released directly from ICE detention. Decisions in other cases are still pending, four applications were denied and three cases were postponed until Saturday. This is not a sweeping victory, but it shows that pressure and careful work can have an impact. Each individual detention case determines freedom, family and future. While vehicles are driven at people in the streets, hearings wrestle over every detail. Both are part of the reality of this system. And that is precisely why we stay involved – with every single person who might otherwise simply disappear.

Putin projects confidence – and continues to rely on military pressure

At his annual, tightly choreographed press conference in Moscow, Putin declared that Russia would achieve its military goals in Ukraine if Kyiv does not agree to the Kremlin’s conditions in possible peace talks. According to him, Russian troops have fully seized the strategic initiative and are advancing along the entire front, faster in some areas and slower in others. Ukrainian forces, he claimed, are retreating everywhere. Putin portrayed the slow but steady territorial gains as proof of his army’s success, even though the hoped for rapid advance never materialized. He also warned the West against using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, speaking of a serious loss of trust in the euro zone. The press conference, which lasted more than four and a half hours and was combined with a nationwide call in show, once again served to demonstrate Putin’s power and to mix criticism of the West with promises of social payments. Against the backdrop of a questionable peace plan pushed by US President Donald Trump, the war in Ukraine dominated the entire event.