TIMES.KY

Cayman Islands, Caribbeanand International News
Sunday, Dec 22, 2024

EU top court paves way to cut billions to Poland and Hungary

EU top court paves way to cut billions to Poland and Hungary

The European Union's top court on Wednesday cleared the way to cut billions of euros of funds to Poland and Hungary, whose populist rulers the bloc accuses of violating democratic rights.
There is no appeal against the ruling by the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice, which dismissed challenges by Warsaw and Budapest against a new EU sanction that would halt funding to member countries which break European laws.

"Today's judgments confirm that we are on the right track," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, announcing the Brussels-based EU executive would decide how to act in the coming weeks.

At stake are hundreds of billions of euros of funds, the EU's internal cohesion, and its international standing.

Hungary and Poland have long been big beneficiaries of EU funds, which the bloc has poured into the former communist countries to help develop their economies since they joined in 2004.

The EU says that to receive those benefits, countries must uphold common European standards, which Warsaw and Budapest have flouted by imposing political control over the judiciary and media, and restricting civil rights.

Disagreements over the rule of law come as the bloc seeks to present a united front on its eastern flank, where Russia has massed forces near Ukraine.

The decision could also have immediate political impact, particularly in Hungary, where an April 3 national election is expected to be the tightest race for nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban since his landslide victory in 2010.

Orban's ruling Fidesz party said the ruling was "political revenge" against Hungary, meant to help the united opposition. Justice Minister Judit Varga said Brussels was abusing its powers against national member states.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told a news conference: "Poland believes that centralization, bureaucratic centralization, federalization... is a dangerous process."

The EU has already frozen pandemic recovery funds worth 36 billion euros ($41 billion) for Poland and 7 billion euros for Hungary. The so-called "conditionality mechanism" could now affect any part of the EU budget, worth 1.8 trillion euros ($2 trillion) for 2021-27.

Poland, the biggest formerly communist EU member with 38 million people, is eligible for more than 75 billion euros through 2027, including for climate, digitalization and public health. Hungary has a population around a quarter the size but has received an even greater share of EU spending per capita.

"Hungary and Poland have been rapidly backsliding on media freedom, independence of judges, the right to protest," said Amnesty International. "Instead of trying to oppose EU funds being conditional on respect for the rule of law, they should respect people's rights and clean up their act."

EU officials said the bloc might move on Hungary first, while political horse-trading would probably delay a decision to withhold funds at least until late this year.

Poland and Hungary have threatened to retaliate by stalling other EU decisions that require unanimity, including on climate and energy, as well as foreign policy.

Orban's chief of staff Gergely Gulyas told Reuters that the dispute would not lead Hungary to block an EU-Africa summit later this week or interfere with any potential sanctions against Russia over Ukraine.

Katalin Cseh, a liberal Hungarian EU lawmaker, said ignoring the erosion of the rule of law in Poland and Hungary would be comparable to the dark comedy film "Don't Look Up", in which politicians fail to stop an asteroid from destroying the Earth.

"If we are sitting tight and assessing, then Mr Orban and Mr Morawiecki would achieve their goal of destroying the Union from within," she said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

TIMES.KY
0:00
0:00
Close
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Israel: Unprecedented Civil Disobedience Looms as IDF Reservists Protest Judiciary Reform
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
Europe is boiling: Extreme Weather Conditions Prevail Across the Continent
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Italian Court's Controversial Ruling on Sexual Harassment Ignites Uproar
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
BBC Personalities Rebuke Accusations Amidst Scandal Involving Teen Exploitation
A Swift Disappointment: Why Is Taylor Swift Bypassing Canada on Her Global Tour?
Historic Moment: Edgars Rinkevics, EU's First Openly Gay Head of State, Takes Office as Latvia's President
Bye bye democracy, human rights, freedom: French Cops Can Now Secretly Activate Phone Cameras, Microphones And GPS To Spy On Citizens
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
Unilever Plummets in a $2.5 Billion Free Fall, to begin with: A Reckoning for Misuse of Corporate Power Against National Interest
Beyond the Blame Game: The Need for Nuanced Perspectives on America's Complex Reality
Twitter Targets Meta: A Tangle of Trade Secrets and Copycat Culture
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
The New French Revolution
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
×