Hungary and Poland Leverage French Unrest to Champion Stricter Migration Policies
As France grapples with violent riots, leaders in Budapest and Warsaw use the events to reinforce their tough stances on immigration and border security.
Amidst widespread unrest in France and Italy, leaders in Hungary and Poland are using the unfolding events to bolster their arguments for strict migration policies. The violence, characterized by burning vehicles and damaged buildings, has provided Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk with a platform to defend their nations' stringent immigration controls and border protection measures, often in defiance of European Union directives.
Magyar stated on social media platform X that "Europe can count on Hungary" and that the recent events highlight "why Hungary advocates the strictest possible approach to migration, and why we will not weaken our border protection or immigration policy under any pressure." He expressed solidarity with the French people, while also condemning vandalism and violence as criminal acts, differentiating them from lawful protest.
Similarly, Tusk posted, "Poland will not repeat the mistakes of other European countries, nor will it pay for them." He emphasized Poland's commitment to defending its borders against illegal migration, maintaining its own asylum policy which does not accept applications, and deporting individuals who violate Polish law. "On security issues, we will be relentless," he added.
These statements come as Eurostat figures show France with nearly 10 million foreign-born residents and Italy with about 7 million in 2025. In contrast, Poland had roughly 1 million and Hungary less than 700,000, with many of Hungary's foreign-born residents originating from other EU countries and a significant portion of Poland's from Ukraine.
Political scientists observe that the visual impact of such unrest serves as potent political ammunition. Daniel Schatz, a Sweden-based political scientist, noted that "Burning buildings and looted shops in France and other countries are becoming political ammunition across Europe… Leaders pushing tougher immigration policies have a blunt message for voters at home: ‘This is what we intend to prevent.’" He added that such imagery can be more impactful than policy discussions.
Recent crime statistics from Eurostat for 2024 indicated that France reported over 300,000 police-recorded offenses, while Italy reported over 140,000. Poland reported approximately 57,300 offenses and Hungary around 28,600. Furthermore, a 2023 Eurostat perception metric showed that about 20% of people in France reported crime or vandalism in their areas, compared to 14-17% in Italy, and 7-8% in Poland, and 6-7% in Hungary.
Boštjan Udovič, Chair of International Relations at the University of Ljubljana’s Faculty of Social Sciences, commented that Central and Eastern European countries often link their EU membership to national identity. He suggested it is unrealistic to expect these nations, which fought for independence based on national movements, to readily adopt a multiethnic societal concept.
Both Magyar and Tusk have positioned themselves as defenders of European stability and traditional values, using the current European situation to reinforce their nationalistic stances. Schatz characterized their approach as demonstrating that "being pro-European does not mean signing up for liberal immigration policies." He also noted that this situation plays into domestic politics, with street events in one country influencing voters in another.
Former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki echoed these sentiments, posting on X, "France is burning, and we must be wise before the harm is done." He announced his new coalition's comprehensive solutions to ensure Poland's prosperity and security.
In Hungary, strict immigration policies remain popular. Á. Félix Debrenti, a former official under Viktor Orbán, stated that Magyar understands the political necessity of maintaining a tough stance on immigration to retain significant support, especially amid domestic pressures. This approach, Debrenti added, allows the government to shift focus to an issue with broad national consensus, particularly as Hungary prepares to commemorate the 1956 Revolution.