The EU Council has approved the European Commission’s proposal to end the rule-of-law procedure against Hungary, opening the way for EUR 4.2 billion in frozen funding and restoring access to Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe for foundation-run universities.

Hungary is set to regain access to EUR 4.2 billion (more than HUF 1,500 billion) in frozen EU funding after member states approved the closure of a long-running procedure over concerns about the rule of law and the protection of the bloc’s financial interests.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/hungary-unlock-4-2-billion-eu-funds/ | DailyNewsHungary

The Ukrainian parliament’s adoption of the law on education in minority languages is an important step forward for the educational rights of Hungarians in Transcarpathia, Ukraine, the foreign minister said in a Facebook post on Monday.

Foreign Minister Anita Orbán stressed in her post that the Ukrainian parliament’s decision was an important step forward, but the process had not yet been concluded.

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Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has thanked Hungary for reportedly giving the “green light” to the opening of two more clusters in Ukraine’s European Union accession negotiations.

Sybiha said on Wednesday that Hungary had supported further steps concerning the second and third negotiating clusters at the level of the EU’s Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER).

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The European Commission has proposed a 15-year probation period for future EU member states, with countries potentially facing the loss of voting rights or funding if they breach democratic standards.

The plan, outlined by European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, is designed to give the bloc faster tools to respond if a newly admitted country undermines the rule of law, democracy or the EU’s principle of sincere cooperation. Kos explicitly invoked the former Hungarian prime minister, saying:

“No more Viktor Orbán.”

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/eu-viktor-orban-probation-new-members/ | DailyNewsHungary

Hungary can only be a truly European country if it remains true to itself, Prime Minister Péter Magyar said in Gyula on Tuesday, 6 October, at a commemoration marking the 177th anniversary of the execution of the Martyrs of Arad.

Magyar delivered his speech at the memorial to the military officers near Gyula Castle. The event was also attended by Hunor Kelemen, president of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ), and Péter Faragó, the organisation’s president in Arad County.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/hungary-europe-magyar-6-october/ | DailyNewsHungary

Hungary will not block the launch of the next, technical stage of European Union accession talks with Ukraine, according to the Financial Times.

The London-based business daily reported on Monday, citing EU sources, that Prime Minister Péter Magyar has instructed Hungarian diplomats not to prevent the EU from sending letters to Ukraine and Moldova concerning the potential opening of the next two negotiating chapter clusters.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/hungary-doesnt-block-next-stage-ukraine-eu/ | DailyNewsHungary

Vladimir Putin’s spokesman has said Moscow hopes Hungary will continue its economic cooperation with Russia, while warning that Budapest’s recent actions could affect bilateral ties.

Kremlin hopes Hungary will continue economic cooperation

The Kremlin hopes “reason will prevail” in Hungary and that Budapest will continue its economic cooperation with Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday. His comments came just hours after Russia announced that it was expelling 10 Hungarian diplomats in response to Hungary’s decision in September to expel 10 Russian diplomats.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/kremlin-hungary-unfriendly-economy-russia/ | DailyNewsHungary

Hungary has voted in favour of new EU rules designed to make the return of people without a legal right to stay more effective, including stricter measures and the possibility of return hubs outside the bloc.

EU approves new return framework

The Council of the European Union has given its final approval to new rules governing the return of non-EU nationals who have no legal right to remain in the bloc.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/hungary-eu-tougher-return-rules-migrants/ | DailyNewsHungary

Moscow has ordered a group of Hungarian diplomats to leave Russia within two weeks, in response to Hungary’s expulsion of 10 Russian diplomats last month, Russian news agency TASS reported. The exact number of Hungarians affected has not yet been disclosed.

Russia announces retaliatory expulsions

Russia has announced the expulsion of Hungarian diplomats following Hungary’s decision last month to order 10 Russian diplomatic staff to leave the country.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/russia-expels-hungarian-diplomats/ | DailyNewsHungary

European Chief Prosecutor Laura Codruța Kövesi says the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) could begin operating in Hungary as early as next year, potentially giving European prosecutors powers to investigate EU-fund fraud, corruption and money laundering in the country.

European Chief Prosecutor gives interview to the Hungarian press

Speaking to Telex during a visit to Budapest, Kövesi said she had met Hungary’s justice, finance and interior ministers, whom she described as strongly committed to making the initiative work. She said the sides had agreed that ten European delegated prosecutors would work in Hungary, alongside police officers, financial investigators and customs officials specifically assigned to EPPO cases.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/eppo-chief-kovesi-what-achieve-in-hungary/ | DailyNewsHungary

Head of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), European Chief Prosecutor Laura Codruta Kovesi, has held talks on the technical details of Hungary’s membership of the EPPO with Justice Minister Márta Görög, Finance Minister András Kármán, Interior Minister Gábor Pósfai and Deputy Prosecutor General István Lajtár at the Ministry of Justice in Budapest, the ministry said on Tuesday.

The EPPO is an independent European Union body tasked with investigating criminal offences affecting the financial interests of the European Union, conducting prosecutions and bringing perpetrators to justice. These offences include budgetary fraud affecting the financial interests of the EU, active and passive corruption, embezzlement, money laundering, cross-border tax fraud and other connected offences.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/hungary-european-public-prosecutors-office/ | DailyNewsHungary

A company selling powerful digital forensic tools to law-enforcement agencies across Europe — including the Hungarian police — has been accused by US authorities of concealing its Russian ownership and the fact that its software was developed in Russia. The case has raised fresh questions over Russian surveillance software in Europe and the security of technologies used to access highly sensitive digital evidence.

As The Hungary Insider reported based on a POLITICO investigation, Virginia-based Oxygen Forensics worked with EU-backed projects and supplied technology to law-enforcement agencies across several European countries.

Continue reading at https://dailynewshungary.com/russian-linked-forensic-technology-reached-hungarian-police/ | DailyNewsHungary