The Polish prime minister hopes that Poland will receive the funds allocated to it under the new EU budget framework at the turn of this year and next.Continue reading
On Tuesday, the Hungarian Justice Minister said in Brussels that there was progress during the series of negotiations with the European Commission on the disbursement of the money that Hungary is entitled to, and that there was full openness to a solution on the part of EU Member States.
Speaking to Hungarian journalists after a meeting of EU ministers for general EU affairs, Judit Varga said that while the European Parliament was exerting political pressure on Hungary, both Member States and the EU Commission were seeking a solution in the framework of the rule of law procedure.
She said that the European Parliament is an ideological institution, and as long as it has a liberal-left majority, it will always have a condemnatory opinion on Hungary. According to Judit Varga, the EP should deal with the real problems of European citizens and solve their everyday challenges, instead of witch-hunting certain countries.
On domestic criticism of the Hungarian government’s actions, according to which the measures would not be sufficient to address EU concerns, the Justice Minister said that it is a Hungarian left-wing tradition that they do not represent Hungary’s interests abroad and are not willing to cooperate in the defense of the Hungarian people.
On the issue of EU-level decisions requiring unanimity under the basic treaties, Varga said the EU treaties were not about vetoes, but focused on a culture of consensus.
She said it was important for countries the size of Hungary to have a last resort to ensure that the most basic national interests are safeguarded.
Before the EU ministers’ meeting, Varga underlined that Hungary has put seventeen measures on the table, adding that these are capable of addressing the concerns raised by the European Commission under the conditionality procedure. These measures focus on improving legislation to strengthen anti-corruption measures, transparency in public procurement and certain conflict of interest rules.
In the European Commission’s assessment, the Hungarian legislative proposals are all capable of providing adequate answers to all technical questions,”
she said.
Varga applauded Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s stand on Hungary’s side as a courageous move, saying that the Warsaw government is against any withdrawal of funds from Hungary. The Polish Prime Minister’s words are proof of the existence of centuries-old Polish-Hungarian unity, she added.
Featured photo via Judit Varga’s Facebook page