BUDAPEST, December 17. /TASS/. Hungary is abandoning the principle of loyal cooperation with the European Union because the EU was the first to violate it when addressing the issue of Russian assets frozen in the West, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
"Hungary adhered to the principle of loyal cooperation with regard to frozen Russian assets. In response, the EU deprived Hungary of its rights. I believe that from this moment on, Hungary is not obliged to observe the principle of loyal cooperation if the other side has rejected it, as has clearly happened," Orban said while speaking with journalists aboard the plane en route to the Belgian capital. The head of government posted a video of the conversation on his page on the X social media platform.
Orban believes that EU leaders violated EU law by proposing to make decisions on Russian financial assets not by consensus, but by a qualified majority vote. "This runs counter to the principle of loyal cooperation in discussions on sanctions and sets a dangerous precedent," the prime minister said. In his view, "this case will have far-reaching consequences."
On December 12, the Council of the European Union decided to indefinitely block Russia’s sovereign assets. The European Commission hopes to secure a decision at the December 18-19 summit to expropriate 210 bln euro in Russian assets, including 185 bln euro that are frozen at the Euroclear platform in Belgium.