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Europe is building new fences and old alliances around the refugee crisis.

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It's always been political. Ultimately, Orban is trying to stay inside Europe, because there's tons of money coming in, but to make it clear that inside Europe, there are distinctions. There is the East and the West, and they are different. The Visegrád Four didn't have a voice before, but now they have something to come together with.

Our Man in Budapest, Todd Williams sees the refugee crisis splitting Europe along old lines - from the 14th century inspired Visegrád alliance between Central European states, to the ghosts of the Austro-Hungarian empire haunting inter-EU politics - and explains how Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán's "me against the world (except maybe Russia)" brand of individualism has paid off so far, but risks losing support from the rest of the world (except maybe Russia.)

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Todd Williams

Todd Williams is an African-American from Sacramento, California who has lived in Budapest, Hungary for the past 26 years, mostly by chance.

 

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