The government has sent its reply to the Commission on the conditionality procedure.Continue reading
Judit Varga met a number of EU commissioners in Brussels in order to reach an agreement about the rule of law conditionality mechanism and Hungary’s EU funds.
“Over the last two days I have had intensive discussions with the members of the European Commission,” Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga wrote on Facebook on Thursday, after holding talks in Brussels regarding Hungary’s EU funds.
She held talks with Vera Jourová, the European Commission’s Vice-President for Values and Transparency, Dubravka Šuica, Vice President for Democracy and Demography, Johannes Hahn, Commissioner for Budget and Administration, Didier Reynders, Commissioner for Justice, Ylva Johansson, Commissioner for Home Affairs, Maros Sefcovic, Commissioner for Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight, Olivér Várhelyi, Hungary’s EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Belgium’s Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib, and French, German, and Hungarian members of the European Parliament.
During her meeting with Jourová, the Justice Minister confirmed that the government remains open to a constructive dialogue with the Commission. “With the letter we sent, we put a comprehensive package of measures on the table with the aim of addressing all the Commission’s concerns,” she added.
“I think we have recently made important progress to reach an agreement,” Varga wrote. “We have consulted on specific issues and concrete commitments. We agree that the efficient and transparent use of EU funds is in our common interest. We are ready to provide far-reaching guarantees for this,” she explained. According to the Minister, “the Hungarian government is committed to a mutually respectful dialogue and is working to ensure that Hungary and the Hungarian people have access to the resources they deserve.”
Gergely Gulyás, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office, said at his weekly press conference on Thursday that consultations were ongoing about the procedure regarding the so-called conditionality mechanism which links EU funds, the Recovery and Resilience Facility, and the seven-year EU budget to the rule of law. According to Gulyás, the European Commission wants to conclude the conditionality mechanism procedure first, and the government accepted this. The efficient and transparent utilization of EU funds is our shared interest, he added. Gulyás stressed that the government provided all the guarantees the Commission requested and they reached an agreement on every professional matter.
Featured photo via Facebook/Varga Judit