Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Hungary agrees deal and lifts veto on €18bn EU aid package for Ukraine

Hungary agrees deal and lifts veto on €18bn EU aid package for Ukraine

Hungary has agreed to lift its veto on sending €18 billion in EU aid to Ukraine
The European Commission last month recommended that €7.5 billion of EU funds to Budapest should be frozen because reforms to strengthen the rule of law in Hungary fell short.

But EU ambassadors agreed to lower the amount frozen to €6.3 billion and approved €5.8 billion post-COVID recovery funding.

In exchange, Bupadest lifted its veto on two key files that required unanimity among EU countries: €18 billion in aid for Ukraine and a global corporate tax.

“Megadeal! EU ambassadors approved in principle a package of €18 billion in support for Ukraine, 15% minimum tax for big corporations, approval of Hungary’s RRP [post-COVID recovery and resilience plan] and an agreement on conditionality,” the Czech Presidency of the European Council said on Twitter.

Budapest will however still need to complete the 27 “super milestones” set out by the European Commission in order to get the funds under the conditionality mechanism and the recovery plan.

These include reforms to strengthen judiciary independence, new rules on auditing and reporting on EU funds, the creation of new independent anti-corruption bodies, and stronger rules to crack down on conflicts of interest.

Hungary’s total cohesion envelope for the 2021-2027 period is €22.5 billion. This means that even if €6.3 billion is frozen, around €16 billion can be committed as normal, amounting to about €3.7 billion a year from 2022.

But Budapest has up to two years to reach the super milestones set by the Commission and unlock the frozen funds. A senior EU official said last month that it expected the Hungarian government to attain these milestones before the end of the first quarter.

The decision is likely bruising for the European Commission, which had last week — after being asked by some of the bloc’s member states to release a new rule of law analysis that would include reforms passed by the Hungarian government earlier this month in a bid to lower the amount frozen — stood by its initial assessment.

It is therefore a victory for Budapest, which successfully wielded its veto on the two other key files in order to secure the EU funds.

On the package of assistance to cover Ukraine’s budget shortfall for 2023, Budapest had argued against raising money on the markets and said it preferred providing assistance to Ukraine on a bilateral basis despite its share being lower as part of an EU package.

It opposed the global corporate tax, known as Pillar II, for months arguing that with the world economy in the slump because of COVID-19 and Russia’s war in Ukraine it was not the time to raise taxes. Yet it upped taxes for small businesses over the summer triggering mass protests.

Johannes Hahn, Commissioner for Budget, nevertheless described the decision as a “big moment for rule of law and EU funds!”

“(The) first use of the conditionality mechanism proves effective, delivering structural improvements,” he said on Twitter.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
China Presses Netherlands to “properly” Resolve the Nexperia Seizure as Supply Chain Risks Grow
Merz Attacks Migrants, Sparks Uproar, and Refuses to Apologize: “Ask Your Daughters”
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
×