EU Triggers $42 Billion Budget Fight With Hungary’s Orban
- Formal notification sets in motion a months-long process
- EU confident to have evidence of rule of law breaches
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The European Union formally triggered its new rule-of-law budgetary powers against Hungary, kickstarting a process that could ultimately deny newly re-elected Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government more than 40 billion euros ($42 billion) in EU funding.
Hungary on Wednesday became the first EU nation targeted by the so-called conditionality mechanism, a legal weapon to rein in nations that violate the bloc’s core values. The European Commission decided to take the step after failing to secure necessary changes on a number of issues, including corruption.