MEPs urge Brussels to cut all funding for Budapest
Over 20 members of the European Parliament have urged the European Commission to immediately freeze all EU funding to Hungary as a means of putting pressure on Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government. The demand comes as the bloc's foreign ministers prepare to weigh potential sanctions, including a suspension of Budapest's voting rights.
In a letter sent Tuesday to Budget Commissioner Piotr Serafin and Justice Commissioner Michael McGrath, 26 MEPs accused Hungary of 'violating EU values and EU laws.' They cited four specific actions, including a March law that effectively bans pride parades in Hungary, a move consistent with Orban's rejection of 'LGBT ideology.'
The lawmakers also blasted proposed Hungarian legislation that would tighten oversight of political organizations receiving foreign funding, which critics argue would suppress 'civil society.'
The MEPs alleged that Budapest's policies indicate that all EU funding for Hungary risks being misused and that a full freeze would be 'proportionate' under the circumstances.
Hungarian MEP Csaba Domotor pushed back against the accusations, arguing that the targeted organizations serve foreign interests with grants they receive from the EU, George Soros' Open Society Foundation, and the recently defunded US Agency for International Development (USAID).
Hungary has repeatedly faced EU criticism for its conservative social policies, which don't align with the bloc's pro-LGBT agenda, and regulations requiring more transparency from foreign-funded organizations.
Budapest has also clashed with Brussels over support for Kiev and anti-Russian sanctions. Orban has warned that admitting Ukraine into the European Union risks drawing the bloc into the ongoing military conflict and called the European Commission's plans to end all imports of Russian energy by the end of 2027 'absolute insanity.'
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has said that such a move would sharply increase energy prices across the EU, seriously undermine member states' national sovereignty, and harm European businesses.
Some EU officials, including Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, have advocated for stronger action, such as triggering Article 7 of the EU Treaty to strip Hungary of its voting rights. Relevant proceedings against Hungary were launched in 2018.
The EU's General Affairs Council, which is comprised of foreign and European affairs ministers from member states, is scheduled to discuss Hungary's Article 7 case for the eighth time next Tuesday, according to the official agenda.
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