Tibor Navracsics: the European Union is an enterprise of peace, not an enterprise of war

János Bóka: During the consecutive presidency, Hungary strives for constructive cooperation with all EU institutions

Hungary will strive for constructive cooperation with all EU institutions, including the European Parliament (EP), during its consecutive presidency of the Council of the EU – stated János Bóka, the minister responsible for European Union affairs, at a press conference for Hungarian journalists in Strasbourg on Tuesday.

Bóka said: in preparation for the Hungarian EU presidency, he held discussions in the European Parliament, met with Roberta Metsola, the board’s president, as well as faction leaders and committee presidents. As he said, his goal is to present the priorities of the Hungarian presidency in the framework of further meetings and hold discussions regarding the framework of cooperation with the EP.

The minister stated that the priorities of the successive Hungarian presidency are still being prepared, but are already clearly outlined. “My negotiating partners and I agreed that these are areas where we have to decide common issues important to the European Union, and in which cooperation is important in order to move the integration process forward,” he declared.

In relation to the fact that the left-wing representatives of the EP have recently expressed their concerns about the Hungarian presidency, János Bóka stated: such doubts did not arise on the part of any of his negotiators.

“The presidency program of the trio was accepted by the council. We are preparing in such a way that Hungary takes over the presidency of the council in the second half of 2024, and everyone else besides us is preparing in the same way,” he emphasized.

Bóka also said that the issue of EU funds did not arise during Tuesday’s EU parliamentary discussions. As he said, the negotiations with the European Commission on the subject will continue on a political and technical level, and this issue will no longer overshadow the Hungarian presidency. According to the minister, no additional legislation is necessary for EU funds to arrive in Hungary.