Orban demands EU funds in exchange for assisting Ukraine: 'We must get all of what it’s due'"

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that the government in Budapest will not support a new European Union aid package for Ukraine until the bloc pays all the funds frozen by the European Commission, Bloomberg quotes him as saying.

This week, the European Commission agreed to unblock one-third of the roughly €30 billion that had been frozen due to rule of law and bribery concerns after Hungary adopted changes to its judiciary that strengthened the independence of the courts.

Orban emphasized that when EU leaders meet again early next year to consider a €50 billion aid package for Ukraine, Hungary will make sure that we get all our money first.

"This is a great opportunity for Hungary to make clear that it must get all of what it’s due," he said.

According to Bloomberg, Orbán stressed that while Hungary abstained in the vote on Ukraine's EU membership negotiations, Orbán still opposes the decision and is prepared to veto Ukraine's EU membership at a later stage.

The paper also quotes Peter Wirovac, an economist at ING Bank in Budapest, who said in an email that it will take about two months for the European Commission's aid to start turning into real government payments.

On November 23, the executive bodies of the European Union approved advance payments in the amount of 900 million euros within the limits of the previously frozen fund to support the economy of Hungary.

Politico reported that the heads of Europe's largest political groups intend to call on Brussels not to unfreeze Hungary's funding until the country is fully restored to the rule of law.

Orbán has repeatedly stated that official Budapest opposes the start of negotiations regarding Ukraine's accession to the bloc. According to the EU statute, this decision can only be taken by a full consensus of all member states, so European and Ukrainian officials tried to convince Orbán not to vote against it.

On the morning of December 14, Orbán promised that Hungary would block the negotiations, but in the evening, despite Hungary's position, the European Council gave the "green light" to the negotiations on the accession of Ukraine and Moldova to the EU.

On December 15, the political advisor to the Prime Minister of Hungary, Baláš Orbán, threatened the European Union with further blackmail from Budapest in the context of Ukraine's accession to the EU.

Read also: EU approves launch of Ukraine accession talks in major step forward