Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze spoke at Hungary’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday, marking his third consecutive appearance at the event that draws conservative politicians from around the world. In his keynote address, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán praised Kobakhidze, calling Georgia the ‘bravest nation in Europe’.
The annual CPAC Hungary conference began in 2022, and is part of a growing expansion across the globe of the original US-based CPAC. Prior to Kobakhidze’s first appearance there in 2024, then-Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili, who was sentenced to five years in prison on corruption charges in January, spoke at the conference in 2023.
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The 2026 conference — featuring the tagline ‘On to Victory’ — presented a number of influential conservative figures from around the world. In addition to Orbán and Kobakhidze, the lineup included Argentinian President Javier Millei, Alice Weidel from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, far-right Dutch leader Geert Wilders, and a variety of politicians and pundits from the US. President Donald Trump and Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš gave video addresses but did not physically attend the conference.
Kobakhidze, who spoke on Saturday before returning to Georgia to attend the funeral of Patriarch Ilia II, dedicated his address to the late leader of the Georgian Orthodox Church before turning to his regular talking points.
‘In honouring the Patriarch’s memory, we call upon ourselves to protect what he so faithfully upheld — our country's national and religious identity’, he said prior to delving into a historical segue.
‘Throughout our long history, we have learned one important lesson: nations endure when they maintain a clear sense of identity and remain faithful to the values that define them. In Georgia, this cultural foundation has historically been closely tied to our Christian tradition’.
Kobakhidze then implied that there was a contradiction between Georgia’s quest to protect its traditional Christian values and the path towards joining the EU, efforts that his government suspended in 2024.
‘We sincerely hope that Europe will regain its sovereignty, Christian identity, and economic strength before Georgia becomes a member of the European Union’.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
Later in his speech, he returned to the same subject, criticising what he called the EU’s tendency to interfere in the domestic affairs of Hungary and other countries.
‘Sadly, Brussels bureaucracy, which lacks sovereignty, deems unacceptable any sovereign government that defends its country’s independence and traditional values. It is unacceptable to them that one can visit this country and see an authentic Hungary, unlike many European nations that have essentially lost their identity. It is unacceptable to them that Hungary, thanks to its patriotic government, effectively protects itself from gender propaganda, migration, and other vices that pose existential challenges for modern Europe’.
Kobakhidze praised Orbán, who is the ruling Georgian Dream party’s strongest ally in the EU, for both his ‘courageous struggle against the Brussels bureaucracy’ and his ‘steadfast support of Georgia’.
‘We hope that the upcoming parliamentary elections [in Hungary] — which is a watershed not only for Hungary, but also for the future of Europe — will be held without rough interference from the Brussels bureaucracy’.
Orbán, who took the stage shortly after, called Kobakhidze a ‘patriotic champion’ who is ‘in the mouth of the Russian bear’. He also attacked both the EU and ‘liberals’ for trying to ‘undermine’ Georgia, and said that Kobakhidze is ‘the one who upholds the sovereignty of Georgia’.
‘The bravest nation in Europe today is the Georgian nation’, Orbán said.
Helena Bedwell
