Orban Speaks On EU Funds To Ukraine, Migration Pact, Sweden NATO Bid

Delivering an annual end of year press conference, PM Viktor Orban delivers typically bellicose rhetoric directed toward the European Union, criticising the migration pact agreed to earlier in the week and seeking to restate his opposition to a major aid package being provided to Ukraine from the EU's long-term budget.

• Orban claims that the EU's new migration package will fail. The deal, labeled as 'historic' by European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, has drawn criticism from Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto who stated that 'We reject this migrant pact, we will not let anybody in against our will.'
• Orban states that the 'Commission wants to give EUR50bn to Ukraine', and that the Hungarian stance that the funds should not come from the EU budget. Says that if amendments to the budget were to start, Hungary will come up with its own ideas. Orban: 'all this will clear up more as we approach the 1 Feb EUCO summit'.
• Orban: 'We do not want to link funds to Ukraine with money issues for Hungary...Hungary's EU funds are in the EU budget, and we should get them....'EU has no option to resolve financing for Ukraine from EU budget without Hungary's approval but can do it from outside budget'.
• On Sweden's NATO ratification: claims that 'there is no Hungarian-Turkish deal on ratification of Sweden's NATO bid', and that 'It will be up to the Hungarian Parliament to decide when to approve the bid...there is no great willingness from lawmakers to approve Sweden's bid.' Lack of ratification for Sweden continues to hinder relations between Budapest and its NATO allies.