No billions for Orban: EU freezes funds for Hungary Snowed in England: dozens of people stay in a pub

However, the amount may not be as high as proposed by the European Commission, several diplomats from the German news agency confirmed late Monday evening after a meeting of the permanent representatives of the member states in Brussels.

The background to the hitherto unprecedented action against Hungary is the concern that EU funds in the country are not being used properly due to insufficient anti-corruption measures. Shortly before the deal was reached, the European Commission renewed a recommendation that around €7.5 billion in funding for Hungary should be frozen until Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s right-wing government fully implements promises to uphold the rule of law. According to a compromise, it should now be around €6.3 billion, recognizing that Hungary has already implemented some of the measures required by the country.

A qualified majority is required for the final approval of the proposal – that means at least 15 of the 27 EU member states must agree, representing at least 65 percent of the EU’s total population. This requirement has been met following the agreement reached in the Permanent Representatives Committee and must now be formalized in a written procedure before the EU summit on Thursday.

The German federal government had already expressed its approval for the crackdown on Hungary in recent days and was in favor of freezing some 7.5 billion euros. “This is about our values, about our rule of law as a European Union as a whole,” Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on the sidelines of a meeting with colleagues from the other EU member states in Brussels. As a Federal Republic, you support “the very good proposals of the European Commission”.

The meeting of permanent representatives of member states also approved the Commission’s proposal to formally confirm Hungary’s plan to deploy EU corona support. However, it also stipulates that payments of up to EUR 5.8 billion may only be made if a total of 27 requirements are met. This also applies to those formulated in the rule of law process.

Further developments are eagerly awaited, especially as Hungary has significant resources to put pressure on the EU. For example, the government in Budapest could block decisions that require unanimity in the EU.

On the other hand, according to diplomats, Hungary even made concessions on Monday evening and gave up its blockade against new Ukraine aid and an EU law on international minimum taxes. The reason is the threat from EU countries such as Germany to block the approval of the Hungarian plan to deploy EU corona aid. This would have meant that by the end of the year, 70 percent of the available funds of EUR 5.8 billion would have expired. (sda/dpa)