Herbert Kickl, leader of the Austrian Freedom organization (FPÖ), gave a speech at the CPAC 2025 conference in Budapest, which was not so much a political speech as a full-fledged ideological manifesto. He did not talk as the leader of the party, but as a typical of the opposition to globalisation and bureaucratic centralism, which he thought dominated modern Europe.
At the beginning, he emphasized the speech of the full speech, referring to the community gathered together and highlighting the patriotic community across borders.
‘Hi, Hungary! Hi, Budapest! Dear guests, dear friends, but above all – brave patriots from Europe and the full world!”
Kickl thanked the hosts for their hospitality and expressed his respect for Hungary, Viktor Orbán and Poland, which, as he stressed, are examples of countries that defy the upper-level unification. In his speech Budapest was not only a gathering place, but a symbol of resistance.
When entering the main topic, Kickl did not hesitate to scope for clear comparisons and cultural references. He recalled the subject “Fight Club” – not as entertainment, but as a metaphor for political reality.
"Fight Club – Sounds like a movie title, like a Netflix show. But it's not fiction. It's our political reality. It's the planet we live in. And the front lines are completely clear today.”
This comparison had strength: it suggested chaos, violence, but besides determination. He presented the situation as a fight without rules, where the opponent – the globalist elite – acts with ruthlessness and shoe.
"On 1 side – the dark side of power: globalists, in their ideological ignorance and arrogance. In contempt of strength and boldness toward the nations. And on the another side are we: patriots, defenders of our homes, freedom, tradition, truth—with our peoples.”
This opposition – simple, binary – was the axis of the full occurrence. For Kickl there was no greyness – there was only a civilization conflict that had to be won.
Kickl presented his formation as a personification of opposition to EU structures and bureaucratic dominance. He emphasized that his movement had not grown from comfortable parliamentary corridors, but from the street, from the discontent of people who no longer felt represented by political elites. He appealed to biblical symbolism—the stories of David and Goliath—to show that strength was not on the side of numerical advantage or capital, but on the side of determination and conviction.
“We are not here to have good conversations. We are here due to the fact that we have a clear position.”
In his opinion, the globalists have long abandoned all rules of the game fair. They act violently and unscrupulously, not with a common purpose, but with their own dominance. Only a determined attitude can halt them – not through compromises, but by direct opposition to their plans.
"Globalists have long stopped limiting themselves. They operate without inhibitions – according to their own rules. And it is up to us to halt them, to break their plans, strategies and tactics – and win this fight for our homes.”
Kickl appealed not to be drawn into the game of opponents. He called for political disobedience to be an expression of sovereignty—not destruction.
In the following part of the speech, Kickl referred to the European Union, stressing that the current form of integration is simply a distortion of the first idea. In his view, Brussels does not support the associate States, but weakens them and subjugates 1 ideology, separated from the reality and needs of people.
"The European Union does not connect, it separates."
The criticism of the Union was not only institutional, but above all cultural. Kickl painted the image of Europe not as a federation, but as a mosaic of nations whose strength lies in diversity, but besides sovereignty.
“Our countries are not branches of abroad corporations based in Brussels.”
According to his vision, Europe should be a community of homelands, not a technocratic empire, controlled from behind closed doors.
In 1 of the most direct passages of his speech, Kickl turned to migration. This is what caused the top resonance among the listeners. He presented it as a fundamental problem, hitting social structures, safety and national identity.
"Austria is not and should never be an immigration country. Illegality must not be paid — either through the right of residence or through financial benefits.”
In his opinion, Europe is making a mistake by accepting mass migration as inevitable or even beneficial. He proposed to change the paradigm – aid yes, but abroad, not at the expense of the citizens of his own country.
"Help centres have no place in Europe. They should be outside the borders of our continent.”
At the end of this section, he made it clear that he was afraid not about hatred, but about the rule of social justice – about the precedence of citizens towards state institutions.
"The society belongs to its citizens, not to strangers who want to usage it. This is not xenophobia – this is justice.”
Later on, Kickl addressed the problem of representation. He stated that modern political, media and economical elites no longer function in the interests of average people. On the contrary, they despise them, ignore their needs and effort to silence them under the appearance of political correctness.
For this reason, Kickl presented himself and the movement he represents as the voice of this "silent majority" – people who work, rise children, pay taxes, and yet were pushed to the margins of public debate.
"We are not working for self-appointed elites, but for our nations. Talk like most, think like most, act like most – this is our duty.”
This declaration contained a political promise, but besides something more – an perfect message: to return to the basics, perceive to the voice of society and reject the dictatorship of minorities that impose their visions without democratic legitimacy.
Kickl besides described how this majority is displaced – not only from public space, but from its own cities and cultures. This process, as he claimed, is systemic, planned and supported by Union structures.
“The average citizens are being pushed out, and those who treat Europe as an all-inclusive club take their place.”
Then Kickl went on to play media. He did not treat them as neutral relays of information, but as participants in the political game. He accused mainstream journalists of supporting a globalist agenda and gagging alternate voices.
"Mainstream media is their spiritual machine. They feed the system. They are the ones who defend this crazy political caste.”
In this metaphor – a spiritual device – there was deep distrust of the media. Kickl did not hide the belief that they are the key tool for maintaining the current order, due to the fact that they can manipulate public opinion and exclude those who think differently.
Despite the harsh criticism of the elite and the system, Kickl's speech was not depressing. On the contrary, in his words the speech of mobilization and even hope sounded more and more intense. He stressed that European societies are starting to wake up – they recognise mechanisms of manipulation and search alternatives.
"People are waking up more and more. They begin to realize that their lives, their hopes, their needs have nothing to do with what the elites service them.”
Kickl argued that he was not alone in the process. According to him, it's not an individual rebellion, but a continental wave of freedom that grows stronger all month. In his opinion, it is in this bottom-up energy that real strength lies, and parties like him are to be its political expression.
"At the moment, a large wave of freedom is developing, which is spreading across Europe."
In the final passage of Kickl's appearance he hit a more emotional tone. He appealed to future generations – children who have not yet been born, but who will gotta live in the planet that today's political decisions will leave them. This was the minute erstwhile his message exceeded the current organization fight and touched on the issue of historical responsibility.
“We are a voice for our children who have not yet been born – but who have the right to grow up in a healthy, safe, free and peaceful home, in intact families.”
For Kickl patriotism is no longer just a political attitude – it is simply a moral duty. What connects the past with the future, and what makes sense of the action “here and now”.
“We came not only to stay. We came to win.”
At the end of his speech, Herbert Kickl did not effort to soften the speech or build the illusion of an agreement. His words were a clear call to action. For him, this fight did not just take place in parliament or at ballot boxes. It ran in culture, in schools, in the media, in everyday elections. It was not metaphorical – it was real.
"Let a strong Europe of homelands live. Long live the time of patriots. Fight, fight, fight – and defeat the globalists.”
Kickl finished, as he started – firmly and with conviction. For any – besides radical. For others – individual yet said what millions think. There was no compromise in Budapest. The words of the front fell. And it all suggests that this is just the beginning.
