Debate: Conclusions of the European Council meeting of - December  and preparation of the Special European Council meeting of February  - Situation in Hungary and frozen EU funds
Date: WEDNESDAY, 17 JANUARY 2024
Speaker: Maroš Šefčovič
Language: EN

First and foremost, I would like to thank you and I very much appreciate the overwhelming support for Ukraine. Despite the raging war, Ukrainians did their utmost to prepare for accession negotiations. They expanded national minority rights, improved their judicial system and ensured checks and balances on power. Lobbying bill to kerb the power of oligarchs just passed the first reading, and all this is happening under heavy missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities. Therefore, I very much appreciate your calls for mobilising financial support for Ukraine and Ukrainians. We will do our utmost, and I’m sure that in close cooperation with the Belgian Presidency to find appropriate solution at the next European Council meeting on 1 February. I also heard very clearly the calls from many MEPs to focus also on other very important issues, be it the Green Deal, strategic autonomy, artificial intelligence, stronger social measures or intensifying our communications with farmers and foresters, the call for mobilising more financial resources to deal with natural disasters. All these calls and interventions just confirm how urgently we need review of multiannual financial framework. We are working very hard on this. I know that the Belgian Presidency is working very hard on this, and I think that support, which I heard from many of you – be it Mr Papandreou, Mr Štefanec, Ms Marques, Mr Fernandes, Mr Belka, Ms Hayer, Mr Moreno Sánchez – just proves that this is really the issue which is coming across all aisles and that there is overwhelming support of the European Parliament for urgent, speedy review of MFF and for mobilising adequate financial resources for the European project. Another very important and passionate issue debated this morning concerned rule of law, Hungary and its access to EU funds. And you know, and I believe that all of you agree with me, that this Commission put the rule of law among our top priorities. Rule of law is diligently scrutinised and rule of law reports are debated at every single General Affairs Council and I am sure that the Minister would concur with me that we spend a lot of time and the discussions are very, very detailed in that regard and concern every single Member State. We also used all the instruments available to us to protect both our values and the EU’s financial interests. And last May, Hungary passed a new law on justice reform which addressed a number of our recommendations from the 2022 report. And this strengthens that judicial independence and limits the possibility of political interference on judiciary. This was required for Hungary to meet the conditions for cohesion funds, and on this, Hungary has delivered. My colleagues, Commissioners responsible for the various aspects of this dossier, already briefed the European Parliament and, of course, are ready to provide further information and further clarifications any time to this House. But let’s not forget that EUR 20 billion is still frozen and blocked under the conditional mechanism. So we have to respect the rules we agreed to together and this is what we are doing. But I would like to reassure everyone in this House about our utmost vigilance if it comes to this very important matter.