George Soros: Orbán turns to familiar scapegoat as Hungary rows with EU

Rightwing prime minister Viktor Orban reignites anti-Soros rhetoric with EU dispute

Hungary's rightwing prime minister, Viktor Orban, is threatening to veto the new EU budget over a provision that would link some funding to rule-of-law concerns. As the standoff intensifies, he has found a familiar enemy to blame: the 90-year-old financier and philanthropist George Soros.

Orban has reinvigorated his government's anti-Soros campaign, which has often been marked by conspiratorial and antisemitic rhetoric, as Hungary and Poland have tussled with other European leaders over the so-called rule-of-law" mechanism. The dispute is holding up final agreement on the EU's 1.7tn (1.5tn) seven-year budget and recovery package.