Four years frozen, 4.2 billion euros unlocked — but at what cost?

Hungary’s Permanent Representation to the European Union informed the public on its social media page that the decision by the Council of the European Union opens the way for full access to the Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe programmes.

According to the notice, member states decided by consensus to close the conditionality procedure against Hungary.

“As a result of the decision, our country will once again have access to 4.2 billion euros from cohesion funds, and the Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe programmes will become available to all Hungarian universities. The decision is an important achievement for Hungary, as it brings to a close a process lasting more than four years, thanks to the large-scale anti-corruption package of measures implemented in recent months, which addressed all previous concerns raised by the European Commission and the Council of the European Union,” the statement read.

The conditionality mechanism linked to the rule of law, which entered into force on 1 January 2021, serves to protect the EU budget and the financial interests of the Union against violations of the principles of the rule of law.

Under the mechanism, member states can only fully access EU funds if they respect fundamental rule-of-law values in their operations, including the independence of the judiciary, effective action against corruption, and the integrity of public procurement.

The procedure was first applied by the Council of the European Union against Hungary, under which 55 percent of the budgetary commitments of three Hungarian cohesion programmes were frozen due to shortcomings in the public procurement system, corruption risks, and concerns related to the independence of the judiciary.

The condition for releasing the frozen amounts was the complete and verified fulfilment of the so-called super-milestones and rule-of-law conditions.

At the end of September, the European Commission announced that it had found the reforms introduced by the new Hungarian government to have yielded results: “Hungary has taken important steps to strengthen the rule of law and protect the financial interests of the Union.”

It then proposed to the Council of the European Union that 4.2 billion euros in cohesion funds be released for Hungary, and that the Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe programmes be made available again to Hungarian students and researchers.

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, welcomed the Council’s decision on X, highlighting that it marked — as she emphasised — the beginning of a new chapter for both Hungary and Europe.

Viktor Weisz, a Member of the European Parliament for Tisza Párt, stressed in a statement sent to MTI that the EU Council’s decision proves that lost European opportunities can be regained through meaningful reforms and by strengthening the rule of law and transparency.

Hungarian young people must not pay the price for political decisions. Erasmus+ is not a privilege but a right — an opportunity to learn, to grow, and to discover Europe, he stressed.

“We are working to ensure that these opportunities are available to every young Hungarian,” the Tisza Párt MEP added.

According to a statement from the European Commission, following the decision, Michael McGrath, the Commissioner responsible for democracy, justice, and the rule of law, declared: “this decision also clearly signals that Hungary has unambiguously returned to the European path.”

He recalled that over the past months, the new Hungarian government had made significant progress in restoring the rule of law and had reversed several decisions made by the previous government.

The decision shows that Hungary’s efforts to restore the rule of law are bearing fruit, he stated.

Respect for the rule of law is a fundamental condition for access to EU funds, the EU Commissioner added in his statement.

Artificial intelligence was used for the translation of parts of the original Hungarian text.