Hungary seeks return of frozen EU billions, but Brussels still distrusts Magyar
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar (Photo: Getty Images)
The European Commission is taking a cautious approach to the initiative of Hungary’s new prime minister, Péter Magyar, to unlock frozen EU funds, despite his insistence, reports Politico.
On Friday, Magyar will meet with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to secure a breakthrough in the release of billions of euros blocked due to violations of EU law during the tenure of former leader Viktor Orbán.
However, EU officials are privately warning that the process is far from as simple as Magyar’s optimistic public statements suggest.
Although an agreement on some elements is likely to be reached on Friday, a Commission official told Politico, they caution that work on more complex issues will continue.
"Of course you can’t ask to reform a country overnight so we don’t expect an agreement on everything, something will be agreed and some other things we will continue to work on," an anonymous EU official said.
Brussels has three main concerns: an impending court ruling on the Commission's previous allocation of funds to Hungary; whether Hungary can carry out reforms quickly without triggering a constitutional crisis; and the example of Poland, where EU funds were released after a change of government, but key reforms have stalled.
According to the article, an immediate risk lies with the European Court of Justice, which is expected to rule in the coming weeks on the Commission’s 2023 decision to release about €10 billion in frozen funds to Hungary.
On May 9, Hungary’s new parliament held its first session, during which Péter Magyar, leader of the winning Tisza party, was elected the country's new prime minister.
Parliamentary elections were held in Hungary on April 12. Viktor Orbán lost after a long period in office, and Péter Magyar took over as head of government.
