Summary
Hungary will lose €1.04 billion in EU funds on January 1, 2025, as disputes with Brussels over corruption and rule of law persist, deepening its recession.
Hungary faces a deepening recession, with with €6.3 billion frozen over rule-of-law concerns, and €200 million lost annually due to daily fines for illegal asylum seeker treatment, alongside a 0.7% economic contraction and a 4.5% budget deficit.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is looking to Chinese investment to offset the €19 billion in blocked EU funds.
While Chinese projects, such as a battery plant, have increased, experts doubt they can replace the scale of EU funding.
But they don’t, that’s the point, they are merely souring their relations in EU, and prevent European and other companies from investing there, because Orban is creating doubt about the country.
The one thing companies prefer above all else, is predictability, and Orban is ruining that completely.
The only thing Orban can offer Russia and China currently is blocking the EU and voting in russian interest. He can’t offer that if he leaves.
But why offer? What does he get in return?