Dispute over Ukraine aid: Orban plays tough ahead of EU summit
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), French President Emmanuel Macron and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen initially wanted to meet with Orban as a foursome to seek a solution, as the Council announced in Brussels. Decisions in favor of Ukraine require unanimity, meaning Orban has a veto.
The planned 50 billion euros over the next four years are intended to protect Ukraine from economic collapse. The EU also wants to open accession talks with Ukraine and its neighbor Moldova, and Georgia is to become a candidate country.
Shortly before the start of the summit, von der Leyen's EU Commission released ten billion euros for Hungary, which had previously been frozen in the dispute over rule of law violations. Brussels justified this with a judicial reform in Hungary, which came into force on Wednesday.
Von der Leyen was therefore sharply criticized. She had paid a gigantic "bribe" to persuade Orban to give in, European parliamentarians were outraged. They continue to see serious judicial shortcomings in Hungary. Orban emphasized that there was no connection with the Ukraine issues.
At the two-day summit, the EU also wants to find a solution to the deadlocked dispute over additional billions for migration and future technologies. Scholz had previously made it clear that, due to the budget shortfalls in Germany and other countries, he was counting on the redistribution of funds already committed in the EU budget framework until 2027. Another topic is the Middle East war.
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Source: www.stern.de
