Marine Le Penʼs far-right pro-Russian party "National Unity" joined the new bloc in the European Parliament "Patriots of Europe". This made the bloc the third largest in the European Parliament.
Politico writes about it.
The president of the new far-right bloc was Jordan Bardella, the deputy chairman of the "National Union", as this party brought the most members to the bloc — 30 MEPs. Kinga Gal from Viktor Orbanʼs Hungarian party "Fidesz" was appointed as the first vice president.
Now "Patriots of Europe" includes 84 legislators from 12 countries. Among them are also the Hungarian right-wing national-conservative party "Fidesz" of Viktor Orbán, the Austrian far-right "Party of Freedom", the Czech centrist party ANO, the Dutch far-right Party for Freedom of Geert Wilders, the Portuguese far-right party Chega, the Spanish right-wing party Vox, the Belgian "Flemish Interest", the Danish Peopleʼs Party, the Greek "Voice of Reason", the Latvian "Latvia first".
The president of "Patriots of Europe" Bardella made a statement saying that this bloc "represents hope for tens of millions of citizens of European nations who value their identity, their sovereignty and their freedom. As a patriotic force, we are going to work together to reclaim our institutions and reorient politics to serve our nations and peoples.”
At the end of June, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban informed about the emergence of a new bloc in the European Parliament, "Patriots of Europe". It was formed by nationalist parties from Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic. All three parties — the blocʼs founders — are pro-Russian, none of them supports Ukraine in a war with Russia. Their leaders are also known for their commitment to the Russian Federation.
As The Guardian writes, by creating the "Patriots for Europe" bloc, Orban claims to become the dominant right-wing force in the European Parliament. In addition to campaigning for conservative family values and against immigration, the bloc will seek an end to European support for Ukraineʼs defense against Russian invasion.