Brussels to Extract Over €52 M Payment from Hungary

FM Peter Szijjarto: The EU has devised a new plan for Ukraine, and the thirteenth sanctions package is also on the table.

Fotó: MARTON_KIRALY

EU foreign ministers met in Brussels on Monday to discuss support for Ukraine and the Israeli war. Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that the European External Action Service (EEAS) has come up with a new proposal to support Ukraine, although it continues to follow on the failed narrative that EU funding will result in Ukraine winning the war and force political change in Russia. He stressed that the mood hasn't changed in the New Year, with Brussels still stuck in a "war psychosis".

Brussels forcing Hungary to pay millions

The proposal again makes billions of euros available for arms shipments to Ukraine effected within the framework of a long-term commitment to the war.

In numerical terms, the plan involves the allocation of a separate five billion-euro fund from national contributions within the European Peace Facility, that would be used for arms transfers for the next year, and could then be extended annually. This is a "softer version" of the earlier proposal in which Brussels had called for the EU to spend €5 billion a year for four years on arms deliveries.

"In Hungary's view, it is totally unacceptable to give a new impetus to arms transfers. Hungary has not supplied arms so far, will not supply arms here after either, and we are not willing to participate in any decision or process that would lead to an increase in arms deliveries to Ukraine," Szijjarto said, adding that under the current proposal

Hungary would have to pay around 23 billion forints (over €52 million) within a year for others to supply arms to Ukraine. Obviously, we will not support this proposal.

🗺 #FAC | This year’s first Foreign Affairs Council is about to begin in Brussels with a heavy agenda focusing on the Middle East. #Hungary will be represented by Minister of Foreign Affairs & Trade Péter Szijjártó. pic.twitter.com/66OWYbRCeE

— Hungary in the EU (@HungaryintheEU) January 22, 2024

At the press conference the foreign minister stressed that despite not contributing to arms deliveries, Hungary will not block others from doing so. On behalf of the government, he said that opening channels of communication and concluding peace talks as soon as possible would be the only morally correct position. "Let's say why millions, tens of millions, hundreds of millions of euros were not provided to support various societal groups, such as farmers, but rather for arms shipments. It will be up to each individual government to decide for itself, each government will ultimately have to answer to its own electorate," Mr Szijjarto stressed.

The position I represented in today's meeting was that Hungary is remaining uninvolved in arms transfers, but we are not preventing others from doing so, and we are not willing to bear any financial burden for the arms deliveries of others,

he emphasized.

The minister also informed his colleagues that Hungary will certainly not "spend 23 billion forints (over €52 million) of Hungarian taxpayers' money in a single year for others to deliver Ukraine weapons that will prolong the war and the suffering, cause more people to die and greater destruction".

13th sanctions package on the way?

The agenda also included talk of adopting a 13th package of anti-Russian sanctions, despite the previous restrictions having primarily harmed Europe and not brought a settlement any closer.

Of course, if you bring this point up, as I do regularly, you are immediately accused of spreading Russian propaganda,

FM Szijjarto noted.

The foreign minister warned his colleagues against trying to extend sanctions to the nuclear industry, as Hungary will not support any such move. 

In this context, he pointed out the incongruity of Russia becoming the number one supplier of uranium to the United States last year, to the tune of one billion dollars, according to reports.

In response to questions from journalists, he said that the main driver behind the new package of sanctions proposed by some against Russia is the need to comply with expectations. He said that several EU member states wanted to show the optics of action.

 

Meeting with Ukrainian FM and EU summit

At the press conference, the foreign minister underlined that he will meet his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba and the head of the Kyiv presidential office, Andriy Yermak, in Uzhhorod (Ungvar) on January 29 to sort through all the issues currently causing difficulties in bilateral relations.

Among them, he said, is the issue of Hungary refusing to contributed to the payment of another 500 million euros from the European Peace Facility for arms shipments to Ukraine.

On this point, we said that we are willing to consider releasing this aid if guarantees are given that Ukraine will cease negatively discriminating against Hungarian companies, or causing them problems by putting them undeservedly and pointlessly on the list of international sponsors of the war.

In connection with the start of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU, Peter Szijjarto reiterated Hungary's position that the European Council in December made an "incorrect, bad and harmful decision", for which Hungary does not want to assume any responsibility.

And that will continue to be our position. Of course, we understand that they are trying to discredit this position and put pressure on us, sometimes by saying that the position is not tough enough, sometimes by other means, but we are not swayed by this. We are sworn to represent the national interest of Hungary, and the pressure they have put on us in this matter has had no effect on the Hungarian position so far,

he underlined. Regarding next week's extraordinary EU summit, he confirmed that the government would not be a partner in "conflating unrelated issues". "That's why it's not worth approaching us in bazaar-like fashion with different options, let's not mix up unrelated things," he said.

Cover photo: Hungarian Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Peter Szijjarto with his EU colleagues in Brussels (Source: Facebook/P Péter Szijjártó)