Ruling on Thursday that Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic breached European Union law by refusing to admit refugees, the European Court of Justice inadvertently gave a gift to Viktor Orban. The ruling will reinforce the Hungarian Prime Minister’s narrative that he alone can be trusted to protect his nation.

The European Court of Justice, which has supreme authority, even over national supreme courts, to make legal rulings on EU member states, says that the three nations were “precluded” from using national security as an excuse to prevent admission of refugees. This was because the three nations failed to establish “any direct relationship with a particular [refugee] case to justify suspending the implementation of or even ceasing to implement its obligations under the relocation decisions.” A fine from the European Commission is likely to follow.