The head of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's administration, Gergely Gulyás, says he has no conditions for approaching an agreement with the EU on unblocking 50 billion euros in aid to Ukraine.
Orban is advised not to wait for the quick unblocking of EU aid to Ukraine
Gulyás noted that representatives of the Hungarian government are currently negotiating with the European Commission regarding the allocation of 50 billion euros as part of aid to Ukraine.
However, the head of Orbán's administration referred to the very different positions of the parties and expressed doubts about the possibility of reaching a compromise.
At the same time, he added that there is no need to make a tragedy out of this, and a solution can be found in the period up to 2026 with the completion of the seven-year financial framework regulating the EU's annual budget.
At the same time, he noted that "Hungary does not rule out supporting Ukraine on a bilateral basis."
What has been said by the European Parliament
The European Parliament's press service condemned the Hungarian government's continuous and systematic efforts to undermine the European community's critical values.
In the resolution adopted on Thursday by 345 votes "for", 104 "against" and 29 "abstentions", the members of the European Parliament express deep concern about the further erosion of democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights in Hungary, in particular, due to the recently adopted so-called package of "national protection sovereignty", which has been compared to Russia's infamous "law on foreign agents".
MEPs condemned the policy of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who blocked the decision to revise the long-term EU budget in December last year, from which 50 billion euros were supposed to help Ukraine.
Parliament calls on the European Council to determine whether Hungary has committed "serious and persistent violations of EU values" under the more direct procedure provided for in Article 7(2) of the EU Treaty.
The resolution deplores the European Commission's decision to unblock up to €10.2 billion in previously frozen funds despite Hungary's failure to implement the necessary reforms to ensure the independence of the judiciary.
In addition, MEPs condemn the systematic discriminatory practice of the Hungarian government against academic circles, journalists, political parties and civil society in the distribution of funds.
The European Parliament is also questioning whether the Hungarian government will be able to fulfil its responsibilities as part of the EU Council vote in the second half of 2024, warning that if the post of European Council president is vacant, those duties will fall to the Hungarian prime minister.
The MEPs ask the Council to find appropriate solutions to mitigate these risks and call for the reform of the decision-making process in the Council to put an end to the abuse of the right of veto and blackmail, the MEPs said in a statement.
