A meeting between Hungary and the European Commission on Friday (29 May) has been described by the new prime minster Péter Magyar as its “most important talks of recent years.”
Magyar is hoping to unblock over €10.4bn in frozen EU post-pandemic Covid funds following a planned meeting on Friday with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen.
The commission has declined to offer any detailed comments given the sensitivity of the issue, but has confirmed that the phasing out of Russian energy will also likely be broached.
“I will not anticipate, prejudge, include, or exclude any particular topic,” said Paula Pinho, chief spokesperson for the commission, when pressed.
Magyar’s government wants to phase out its Russian energy reliance by 2035, whereas the EU has set an overall deadline for next year under its so-called RepowerEU roadmap.
