The European Union denied Hungary €1 billion in funding due to ongoing corruption issues within the country.

Hungary has lost its right to receive approximately 1 billion euros in assistance from the European Union due to violations related to the rule of law.

This was reported to the DPA news agency by a spokesperson for the European Commission.

The country's government was required to implement reforms aimed at complying with EU standards by the end of 2024, including changes to laws regarding the prevention of conflicts of interest and the fight against corruption. Budapest failed to do so, resulting in the country definitively losing its entitlement to the mentioned aid.

At the end of 2022, the EU blocked around 30 billion euros for Hungary due to issues related to the rule of law, particularly concerning the fight against corruption. Budapest began to implement some reforms, leading to the unblocking of a portion of the funds. The currently frozen amount stands at 19 billion euros.

In early December, Orban threatened to veto the next seven-year EU budget if Brussels did not unblock the frozen funds for his country. Simultaneously, in 2024, Hungary secured 1 billion euros in loans from Chinese banks.

Background. Previously, Mind reported that a German politician and Member of the European Parliament accused Orban of embezzling at least 14 billion euros allocated by the EU to Hungary.