Crypto News: Brussels Edition: Orban's moment

Welcome to the weekend issue of Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. Join us on Saturdays for deeper dives from our bureaus across Europe.

BUDAPEST — Standing inside the Hungarian capital's 67,215-seat national football stadium, Viktor Orban regaled reporters about how he celebrated his friend Donald Trump's victory.

The Hungarian prime minister emerged from a summit he hosted with European leaders and explained how he followed the local custom of Kyrgyzstan where was visiting by toasting Trump's win with vodka, rather than champagne.

Albania's prime minister, Edi Rama, had a very different take about his celebratory host, saying it felt like "all of Europe gathering in the barn of its black sheep" — a reference to Orban's clashes with the rest of the EU on support for Ukraine and the rule of law.

Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister, during a news conference. Photographer: Akos Stiller/Bloomberg

The fact that the summit even took place was something of an achievement for Orban, whose freewheeling diplomacy at the start of Hungary's EU presidency in July, including a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, triggered a partial boycott of other meetings in Budapest.

For Orban, the fact that European leaders all converged on Budapest the day after Trump was projected as winner made it all the sweeter for him.

Yet for all the gloating leaders may have anticipated from Orban, who hopes to convert his early support of Trump to become the next US president's whisperer in Europe, the Hungarian leader was surprisingly restrained. He patiently fielded confrontational questions from journalists in two lengthy news conferences.

Not even Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, who turned his back to Orban for long seconds upon his arrival to protest earlier remarks that were taken as derogatory in Bucharest, got the nationalist leader worked up.

Instead, Orban exuded an air of confidence, telling fellow European leaders they needed to brace for a stark shift in US policy — one that he's been calling for and that may potentially leave the continent alone in funding Ukraine. He urged Germany's Olaf Scholz and France's Emmanuel Macron to pick up the phone and engage with Putin, we're told.

EU leaders spent much of their dinner in Hungary's neo-gothic parliament building and the next day feeling their way to a new reality, There was no tangible sign of a new policy, with most member states urging the EU to use Trump's victory to step up and be less reliant on its trans-Atlantic partner.

But Orban told reporters he had one final suggestion for his EU counterparts: "Make Europe great again"

— Zoltan Simon, Budapest bureau chief

Editor's Note: The Brussels Edition won't be published on Monday, Nov. 11, which is a holiday in Belgium. It will return on Tuesday.

Spain's Hurricane Katrina Moment Saw Officials Ignoring Warnings

A resident walks past flood damaged buildings and riverbed following flash floods in Chiva, Spain. Photographer: Angel Garcia/Bloomberg

As a deadly storm bore down on Valencia, Spain's national climate agency had issued a red alert. But rather than activating emergency protocols and triggering wider alerts, the regional president went off to the next meeting on his schedule. The towns around the coastal city have been living with the consequences of that decision ever since.

How Trump Could Put His Campaign Promises on Tariffs Into Action

President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to impose massive new tariffs upon entering office on Jan. 20, calling them "the greatest thing ever invented." The big question facing those that stand to be affected by Trump's plans is just how he'll go about rolling out the new tariffs — and how fast.

Inside a Security Company Protecting Russia's Oil Fleet

The UK has spent more than a year trying to get hundreds of guns moved from floating armories that are helping Russia profit enormously from its oil trade despite widespread sanctions. The private maritime security industry's murky nature contributes to the challenges the UK and its Western partners have had in their efforts to crack down on Moscow economically.

Europe's Dark, Windless Days Show Risk of Renewables Rollout

Europe's power prices soared to levels last seen during the energy crisis. Only it wasn't a war or other geopolitical events that caused it, but the dark, windless weather that is all too common during winter.

Paris Restricts Through Traffic in Center of French Capital

A long-planned ban on private cars driving through the heart of the French capital is the latest part of Mayor Anne Hidalgo's campaign to cut pollution and congestion. And like many of its predecessors, the restrictions arrives with some controversy.

All week: COP29 begins in Baku, Azerbaijan
Tuesday: European Parliament holds confirmation hearings for 6 executive vice presidents-designate, including Italy's Raffaele Fitto, Spain's Teresa Ribera, France's Stephane Sejourne and Finland's Henna Virkkunen, as well as Estonia's Kaja Kallas
Wednesday-Thursday: Rebuild Ukraine conference in Warsaw
Friday: European Commission publishes economic forecasts

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