New Hungarian PM and EU president deliver joint statement

Key Concepts

• Rule of Law & Anti-Corruption Reforms: Structural changes required by the EU to address state capture, conflict of interest, and fraud.
• Next Generation EU (NGEU): A recovery instrument to support economic growth, energy, and digital transition.
• Cohesion Funds: EU financial instruments aimed at reducing regional disparities.
• Public Interest Trusts (PITs): Entities previously used to manage large portions of the Hungarian economy, now being phased out due to corruption risks.
• EPPO (European Public Prosecutor’s Office): An independent EU body responsible for investigating and prosecuting crimes against the EU budget.
• Super Milestones: Specific, high-priority reform benchmarks that must be met to unlock frozen EU funding.

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1. Main Topics and Financial Agreements

President Ursula von der Leyen and Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced a "historic breakthrough" regarding the release of frozen EU funds for Hungary. The agreement totals 16.4 billion euros, categorized as follows:

• 10 billion euros: Unlocked from the revised Next Generation EU plan for energy, housing, transport, and SME support.
• 4.2 billion euros: Cohesion funds released following progress on "super milestones" related to conditionality.
• 2.2 billion euros: Additional cohesion funds unlocked specifically for academic freedom and integrity reforms.

2. Structural Reforms and Anti-Corruption Measures

The Hungarian government has committed to a "robust architecture" to restore the rule of law:

• EPPO Accession: Hungary has decided to join the European Public Prosecutor’s Office to safeguard EU funds.
• Integrity Authority: Strengthening the authority to ensure it has the power to detect corruption and conflicts of interest.
• Public Procurement: Revising laws to curb fraud and protect taxpayer money.
• Property Declarations: A new, stricter system where lying on a property declaration carries a potential 2-year prison term.
• Phasing out PITs: Public Interest Trusts that facilitated the channeling of public funds to private interests are being phased out, with a transition period for university-related trusts ending August 31, 2027.

3. Strategic Investments and Economic Recovery

The funds are earmarked for specific sectors to kick-start the economy:

• Energy: 1.5 billion euros for electric grid development to support solar and wind energy, aiming to lower electricity prices for businesses.
• Transport: 2 billion euros allocated for purchasing new interurban trains to replace aging, unsafe infrastructure.
• SMEs: Grants and loans to improve competitiveness and digital technology adoption.
• Housing: Utilization of the "multiplicator effect" to finance new housing projects.

4. Key Arguments and Perspectives

• The "Wind of Change": President von der Leyen emphasized that Hungary is "turning the page" and that investor confidence is returning due to the speed of the new government's reforms.
• Accountability: Prime Minister Magyar argued that the previous government (Orbán) lied to the public about the reasons for frozen funds, claiming it was due to ideology (migration/war) when it was actually due to systemic corruption.
• Merit-Based Accession: Regarding Ukraine, both leaders clarified that there is no link between the release of Hungarian funds and the opening of EU accession clusters for Ukraine. The process remains strictly merit-based.
• Migration: The PM addressed the EU migration pact, noting that the previous government had the opportunity to influence it but failed to do so, and clarified that Hungary will not host migrant camps.

5. Notable Quotes

• President von der Leyen: "The 12th of April will stay in our memory for a very long time. On that day, the Hungarian people took their future in their hands... They chose to return to the heart of our Union."
• Prime Minister Magyar: "We fought for each euro cent. We said, 'We want the whole thing. We want the whole package.'"
• Prime Minister Magyar (on corruption): "The only thing that we have to do is to fight corruption. Actually, in certain aspects we may be over-achieving the commission's requests."

6. Synthesis and Conclusion

The press point marks a significant shift in the relationship between Brussels and Budapest. By committing to rigorous anti-corruption reforms—including joining the EPPO and reforming property declaration laws—the new Hungarian government has successfully unlocked 16.4 billion euros in EU funding. The focus is now on the implementation of these reforms and the deployment of funds into critical infrastructure, education, and energy sectors to stabilize the Hungarian economy and restore its standing within the European Union. The leadership emphasized that this is a "joint success" built on transparency and a shared commitment to the rule of law.