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BRUSSELS — Péter Magyar trumpeted his meeting with Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels as a breakthrough — but Hungary is still a long way from receiving the billions of euros in EU funds that Budapest wants.
“Based on today’s meeting, €16.4 billion euros have been unlocked,” the Hungarian prime minister told reporters after Friday’s meeting, calling the outcome better than he had expected.
Yet Commission officials offered a more cautious description, describing Friday’s deal as a political agreement on a broad direction rather than a decision to release the cash, which was blocked over breaches of EU law during former leader Viktor Orbán’s years in power.
“We haven’t agreed to disburse the funds,” a senior Commission official said. “We’ve agreed on a list of commitments which, if completed by Aug. 31, will trigger the payment of those funds.”
