Is Gradual Integration The Enlargement Silver Bullet?

In this special episode of the Visegrad Insight podcast, Staś Kaleta talks with Szabolcs Panyi and Luca Soltesz, who reflect on the record-breaking Budapest Pride March and its wider political implications for Hungary ahead of the 2026 elections. They explore how the spontaneous mobilisation signals growing anti-government sentiment, the strategic silence of opposition leader Péter Magyar and the troubling rise in surveillance and far-right obstruction backed by Orbán’s weakening regime.Link to Luca Soltesz's article: https://visegradinsight.eu/the-pride-march-that-signalled-a-hungary-beyond-orban-commentary/

This week, Poland's EU Council Presidency ends, and Hungary's Visegrád Group Presidency begins – under a secret programme that Budapest has not shared with its neighbours. We look at how Viktor Orbán may try to spoil the European direction Donald Tusk has tried to shape over the last six months. We also look back on the NATO summit in the Hague, and the largest ever Pride parade in Budapest.

In this episode, we break down regional responses to escalating tensions in the Middle East, after the US bombed three of Iran’s nuclear sites. We also point out developing stories across the Visegrád Group – from Budapest’s Pride march to vote-counting irregularities in Poland.

In this episode, we look at growing warnings about the threat Russia poses – from Ukraine and Southeast Europe to the Baltics and Finland. We also breakdown regional reactions to ongoing hostilities between Israel and Iran.

In this episode, we focus on tense political atmospheres in Poland and Czechia. In Warsaw, Donald Tusk has called for a vote of confidence after an election loss. In Prague, the opposition is looking to punish Petr Fiala’s government, after it was revealed that a justice minister received a secret €40 million donation from a convicted online drug dealer. We also breakdown Karol Nawrocki’s first interview in foreign media and the latest from Hungary.

In this episode, we predict what Karol Nawrocki’s presidential electoral victory will mean for Poland, and beyond. You’ll hear comments from:Spasimir Domaradzki, a Researcher and lecturer at the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies of the University of WarsawKrzysztof Izdebski, a Member of the Board and Director for Advocacy and Development at the Stefan Batory FoundationEdit Zgut-Przybylska, Assistant Professor at the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology in the Polish academy of sciences, and a research fellow at the CEU democracy institute in BudapestPavel Havlicek, fellow at the Association for International Affairs Research Centre in PragueMarzenna Guz-Vetter, Former Head and Spokesperson of the European Commission Representation in PolandRuslanas Irzikevicius, Director at the Lithuanian Media Support FundRadu Albu-Comanescu, Lecturer in European Integration at the University of Cluj-Napoca

In this episode, we discuss Donald Trump’s Ukraine strategy, whether he has finally realised Vladimir Putin is ‘crazy’, and what that realisation would mean for EU security. We then breakdown debates and rallies in the final week before Poland’s crucial presidential election run-off.

In this episode, our Visegrad Insight Enlargement Fellow Jan Farfal interviews Saskia Hollander, Senior Research Fellow at The Clingendael Institute. As the EU considers the gradual integration model for enlargement, we explore its potential benefits and risks. The discussion is based on the following Clingendael report: https://www.clingendael.org/publication/gradual-integration-candidate-countries-european-union.  

In this episode, we look at a weekend of key elections in Romania and Poland. To break down Nicușor Dan’s remarkable victory, we hear from special guests Alex Olaru (Editor-in-Chief at PressOne), Alina Bârgǎoanu (Visegrad Insight Fellow, Member of the advisory board of the European Digital Media Observatory), and Radu Albu-Comǎnescu (Visegrad Insight Fellow, Lecturer at the University of Cluj-Napoca).

In this episode, we explore a redefined global security context with Róbert Ondrejcsák, Executive Director of the European Leadership Network, former Slovak Ambassador to the UK and former Deputy Defence Minister of Slovakia. We break down Xi Jinping’s call for Russia and China to become ‘friends of steel’ – in opposition to leaders in Kyiv and Washington – and the place of different V4 countries in this context.