PM Orban: We ll have a free summer

PM Orban: We ll have a free summer

I have no doubt that Hungarians will have a free summer, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told Hungary s pubic radio.

POLITICS MARCH 26. 2021 08:16

Hungary s prime minister arrived from the meeting of the Operative Board in charge of the country s coronavirus pandemic response, where he consulted with experts. „The question is not when the epidemic will peak, but rather when we can start descending from that peak,” Viktor Orban said. „I would not go into predictions about what will happen just yet,” he added.

Doctors are doing superhuman work and they must all be thanked, Mr Orban said. While many are being treated in hospitals, we must also continue the vaccination campaign, he added. Everyone is tired and exhausted, but we have to continue fighting. We still have free hospital beds and available ventilators and the country is at around half of its capacity, the prime minister said. We are transferring medical personnel and involving volunteers, including medical students, he added.

We are experiencing the most difficult weeks of the epidemic, Mr Orban said. This is true not only for Hungary, but also for many other countries in Europe, with the situation becoming so serious because of the British mutation of the virus. This variant is spreading much faster and poses a bigger danger for young people as well, PM Orban said. „Now young people must be particularly careful not only for the sake of the elderly, but also for their own health.”

„The only protection against the virus is vaccination, which is contingent on the availability of vaccines. In Hungary, health authorities could administer twice as many jabs as are currently being administered, but there are not enough vaccines,” PM Orban said. Gleaning from the meeting of EU heads of government on Thursday, it became clear that many other EU countries are in a far worse situation than Hungary, he added.

The greatest number of vaccines are expected to arrive to the country in May, the Hungarian prime minister said. „There is no doubt in my mind that Hungarians can have a free [of restrictions] summer. However, other EU countries have to work much harder to make this happen in their states,” he added.

EU prime ministers have handed over the procurement of Western vaccines to Brussels, including me, PM Orban told public radio. This was a bad decision, for which I take full responsibility, he said. By now, it s become clear that every member state should have taken their own path. According to Mr Orban, everyone viewed the situation from their own perspective and hoped that Brussels would do the same, but that was unfortunately not the case.

Although Brussels has managed to negotiate discount purchase prices, there are no vaccines, Viktor Orban recalled. Although this was an obvious failure, now is not the time to lay blame, Mr Orban said, stressing the crucial role of Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, who indicated as early as last November that there would be a cut-throat competition to procure jabs, just like before with purchasing ventilators.

Back then Mr Szijjarto said that we should go out to negotiate with the Russians and the Chinese and purchase all the vaccines, because this is not an ideological or a political issue. Those who are just starting their vaccine negotiations with the Eastern countries now should join the queue, Mr Orban said.

The number of vaccinated people has reached 1.8 million, with nearly 600 thousand having also received the second dose. There are jabs in stock, but they have yet to be checked before they can be rolled out. This can take weeks, or days if everything goes well. However, many vaccines in stock are needed for the second dose, so they cannot be used to vaccinate new people.

There can be no immediate restart, Viktor Orban declared. Epidemiologists say reopening should not be allowed as long as infection rates are this high. Stores will be allowed to receive customers on a square-metre basis, the details of which will be discussed by the Operative Board on Friday. There has been a debate regarding beauticians businesses, but epidemiologists say they should not be allowed to reopen yet. This will also be decided within a few hours, the PM Orban said.

Reopening of any type will not be possible until those aged over 65 will not receive their jab, because they are most at risk, Viktor Orban said. Reopening will only be possible once they have been vaccinated and the immediate danger has passed. As of now, 71 per cent of those over 65 have already been inoculated.

In terms of schools, we can only talk about reopening once those aged over 65 have been vaccinated. Teachers also need to be vaccinated, and there is an ongoing debate about whether it s right to inoculate teachers out of turn. It s not just school teachers but also school workers that need to be vaccinated, Mr Orban said.

There is a realistic chance for schools to resume teaching on 19 April, by which time the number of first vaccinations will be over 3 million, the prime minister said. The inoculations are being administered according to the weekly schedule and GPs are performing splendidly, Mr Orban pointed out.

It is safe to say that we ll have a free (of restrictions) summer, although there may be some cultural events where attendance will be tied to a vaccination certificate. Life in Hungary will become free ahead of all EU countries, Mr Orban said.

We have some difficult days ahead, PM Orban said, adding that he would like to ask for mutual patience and kindness from everyone. Doctors want to cure everyone, but the virus is deadly. That is the why many die, not because doctors won t help them.

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coronavirus, Hungary, interview, prime minister, viktor orban