It’s a battle between two dictatorial rules. One is national, the other supranational. Germany accuses the Hungarian government of undermining the rule of law—a sure sign of a rising national dictatorship. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán accuses Germany of interfering in Hungarian politics through the European Union, setting up a supranational dictatorship. A similar battle unfolded in Poland, and Germany won. Who will win in Hungary?

The European Commission is withholding €18 billion (us$21 billion) in EU funds from Hungary, citing breaches of European law. The latest Rule of Law Report, released by the European Commission on July 8, claims Hungary has made “no progress” in qualifying to receive those funds any time soon.

“I wish it were otherwise, and I wish that those funds could be made available and that the people of Hungary, who are very significantly pro-EU, would be in a position to benefit from those funds, but that requires compliance with the rule of law,” European Commissioner for Justice Michael McGrath said when presenting the report.

But it could get worse. Germany’s new coalition government led by Friedrich Merz demands that the EU more severely punish countries that violate “the rule of law.” Politico described the clause as a “thinly veiled reference to Viktor Orbán’s Hungary.”

The allegations are not without reason. In June, Csaba Lukács, founder and editor of the newspaper Magyar Hang, told the Trumpet:

The governmental party made a new foundation. It’s called Central European Media Foundation, and they bought out or captured more than 500 media outlets: tv stations, radio stations, web portals, print newspapers, daily countryside newspapers, all kinds of media, and they are spreading pure governmental propaganda. …

We have been living in Hungary for more than 10 years in an emergency situation. They are extending that emergency situation year by year. They started with migration. Later on, it was a covid emergency. Now it’s a war emergency because we have a war in our neighboring country of Ukraine. So we are living in a constant emergency situation, which allows the government to rule without parliamentary permission. They can issue governmental decrees. There is no debate in Parliament …. They can restrict journalists’ work as well.

Orbán claims these measures are intended to protect the Hungarian population from foreign influence. When it comes to missing out on EU funds, Orbán sees it as the price of freedom. But not everyone in Hungary agrees.

Opposition leader Péter Magyar and his Tisza Party advocate for aligning Hungary’s interests with the EU. Magyar promises to unlock the billions of euros of suspended funds to revive the economy. Magyar is a former member of Orbán’s Fidesz party and represents the most serious political challenge to Orbán’s 15-year rule.

In an interview published on Mandiner’s YouTube channel, Orbán accused opposition leader Péter Magyar and his Tisza Party of being backed by foreign powers. He said:

I am not fighting Péter Magyar and the Tisza Party, but their German masters. … It has always been dictated from outside what this country needs. And such people are always found by foreign powers who care about what happens in Hungary and want to influence Hungarian events.

His comments echo those of Poland’s Law and Justice party. Its chairman, Jarosław Kaczyński, claimed in 2021: “The Germans have laid their cards on the table. They want to establish the Fourth Reich.”

The authoritarian Polish government faced Germany’s supranational dictatorial ambitions. The result may reveal Hungary’s future. As Trumpet assistant managing editor Richard Palmer wrote:

Poland’s Law and Justice party (PiS), which had governed Poland since 2015, stood directly in the way of Germany’s European ambitions. Its leaders repeatedly exposed Germany’s domination of the EU. …

Many critical steps toward transforming the EU into a superstate require unanimous consent from all members. Poland has often stood in the way. The PiS government frustrated Germany in other ways too; for example, it demanded $1.4 trillion in reparations from Germany for the destruction it had inflicted in World War ii.

The EU fought back. In October 2021, the European Court of Justice began fining Poland €1 million per day, its heaviest penalty ever, accusing the Polish government of interfering in the judiciary. PiS responded by threatening to leave the union entirely. …

Instead, on December 13, as Poland’s president swore in Donald Tusk as prime minister, Poland was brought under German control.

Tusk has, among other things, served as president of the European Council, the EU’s guiding body. His new foreign minister, Radoslaw Sikorski, is famous for saying, “I fear German power less than I am beginning to fear German inactivity.” The last time Sikorski was in that office, he was one of the loudest voices in Europe calling for more German military leadership.

Poland has more or less surrendered to German rule; there are indications Hungary will follow. Magyar’s party reached 30 percent in the 2024 European Parliament elections, while Orbán’s received 44.6 percent—its worst result ever in European Parliament elections. A June survey showed the Tisza Party has a 15-point lead ahead of next year’s national election.

There are also more anecdotal signs Orbán is losing his grip on power. In March, the Hungarian Parliament passed a law banning pride marches. At a march on June 28, there was record attendance, unhindered by the authorities. Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung commented:

It was clear for all to see: Orbán, who had been so confident, was unable to assert himself on his own turf. That cannot have been the message he intended to send. The confusion among Orbán’s loyal supporters and loyal media outlets suggests that this has led to uncertainty within the ranks of Orbán’s Fidesz party.

Orbán miscalculated.

Evidence is mounting that Orbán is about to lose control—which would mark another major step in the fulfillment of Bible prophecy.

Revelation 17 describes a European bloc led by Germany. “And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast” (verses 12-13).

In the March 2022 Trumpet, editor in chief Gerald Flurry explained: “We can expect 10 strong leaders to arise in Europe—surely some of them are already in power—and come together to strengthen a European superpower led by Germany.“

Bible prophecy is clear that these European leaders will submit to Germany in a moment of great crisis. If Orbán is not willing to do that, he will be replaced by the supranational dictate of Germany.

The good news is that this will precede a world government ruled not by men, but by God Himself. The very next verse of Revelation 17 shows that Jesus Christ will return to subdue these rulers and to set up God’s rule on earth (see also Daniel 2:44).

To understand how these world events connect with the best news mankind could ever hear, read “Ten Kings of the New Holy Roman Empire Rising Now” by Gerald Flurry.