Hungary’s Power Play in North Macedonia

The expansion of Hungarian media interests in North Macedonia, driven by businesspeople associated with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, has become increasingly evident in recent years. Through the strategic acquisition of key television stations and news portals, Budapest’s influence now permeates public discourse in the country. Two media executives, Péter Schatz and Ágnes Adamik, have orchestrated the purchase of significant media outlets, including Alfa TV, Republika, Kurir, Lider, Deneshen, Ekonomski, Vistina, and NetPress. All are aligned with the governing illiberal and nationalist VMRO-DPMNE party and its leaders, including Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski and his predecessor, Nikola Gruevski, who is sanctioned under the US Magnitsky Act.

Investigations have revealed that pro-VMRO-DPMNE outlets have also received indirect financial support through advertising from Hungarian businesses. This financial backing has helped sustain media networks aligned with Gruevski, who fled to Budapest in 2018 to avoid a corruption sentence and remains there under Orbán’s protection. Gruevski’s presence there is a political statement, backing up Orbán’s narrative of supporting illiberal nationalist leaders of other countries.

Other recent developments have further highlighted Hungary’s increasing engagement with North Macedonia. The government in Budapest last year gave its counterpart in Skopje a $500 million loan, which came out a €1 billion loan just secured from China. This is the largest instance of Hungarian financial support to another country since the fall of communism. This loan to North Macedonia was issued soon after VMRO-DPMNE regained power in May 2024. 

Geopolitical Realignment

As North Macedonia under its current government is moving away from the path to EU membership, it is aligning itself more closely with an illiberal bloc that includes China, Hungary, Russia, and Serbia. In this context, Hungary’s involvement in North Macedonia supports the nationalist, Moscow-backed, ambitions of Serbia and Republika Srpska in the region. And it is intertwined with Russia’s efforts to undermine European integration and Western ties through disinformation. At the same time, China’s economic investments channeled through Budapest offer a non-Western model of economic development that subtly contrasts with democratic, pro-EU reforms. 

Hungary’s involvement in North Macedonia supports the nationalist, Moscow-backed, ambitions of Serbia and Republika Srpska in the region.

By amplifying VMRO-DPMNE’s illiberal and nationalist rhetoric, Hungarian-owned media outlets are also supporting anti-EU opinion in North Macedonia, since the party opposes including a mention the Bulgarian ethnic minority in the preamble of the constitution, which is a EU pre-accession requirement. This contributes to a domestic environment where any compromise with the EU is politically perilous.

In addition, North Macedonia’s Croatian ethnic minority has raised the possibility of its inclusion in the constitution, potentially posing further challenges for Skopje regarding minority rights. This makes EU accession even more complicated and plays well into the hands of the VMRO-DPMNE elite, which seems interested in repositioning the country geopolitically.

By promoting its illiberal governance model, financing nationalist media, and protecting political allies like Gruevski and Mickoski, Hungary is solidifying its long-term influence in the Balkans. This approach not only serves its geopolitical ambitions but also contributes to wider political shifts by strengthening illiberal and Eurosceptic forces in Southeastern Europe.