Hungary’s new Foreign Minister, Anita Orbán, stated that Budapest will no longer use its veto power in the EU as a tool for political pressure. According to her, Prime Minister Péter Magyar’s government aims to restore trust among its EU and NATO partners.
According to Bloomberg, Anita Orbán made this statement during parliamentary hearings on her confirmation.
The minister emphasized that under the previous government, Hungary too often created problems in the EU decision-making process.
“We used the veto not as a last resort, but for political theater,” she said.
According to Orbán, one of the new government’s top priorities is to restore access to tens of billions of euros in EU funding that was frozen due to concerns about the state of the rule of law in the country.
During the election campaign, the Tisza party, which won last month’s election, promised to secure the return of European funds. This issue is considered crucial for the recovery of Hungary’s economy, which has barely grown over the past three years.
Anita Orbán stated that the government plans to strengthen the independence of the judicial system and control over public spending.
At the same time, she said that Hungary would support Ukraine’s further integration into the EU only in light of “strict national interest.” The new government will also continue to demand expanded rights for the Hungarian minority in Ukraine.
During the election campaign, Viktor Orbán’s government used its veto power to block changes to the EU budget that would have allowed a €90 billion loan to Ukraine to support its war against Russia.
