Merkel policies likened to Nazi invasion

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has drawn parallels between the policies of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Nazi invasion of his country in 1944 during the course of the Second World War.

“The Germans have already sent cavalry to Hungary – they came in form of tanks. Our request is that they don’t send any. It didn’t work out,’ Orban told state broadcaster Kossuth Radio.

The Hungarian leader’s comments came after Merkel said last week that she “would do everything to put Hungary in the right direction, but we won’t be sending in the cavalry straight away.”

Orban and his Fidesz conservative political party have used two-thirds majority in the legislature to push through amendments to the Hungarian constitution.

The constitutional changes have come under attack from Germany and the European Union, which claim they are undemocratic.

Critics in Brussels argue that Hungary is sliding into a dictatorship, and state that the country should be expelled from the EU.

On Monday, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle dismissed Orban’s comments, and the Hungarian leader of a “deplorable derailment which we clearly reject.”

In March, Merkel voiced criticism of Hungary’s constitutional changes, saying concerns raised by the European Union about the disputed alterations should be taken seriously.