Minister Gulyás Announces Hungary’s Decision to Opt Out of EU’s Ukraine ‘War Loan’
Ankara: Hungary will not participate in the European Union’s ‘war loan’ aimed at supporting Ukraine, as stated by Minister Gergely Gulyás during the final government press briefing of the year. The government believes that the funds are unlikely to be repaid, which has led to Hungary’s decision to abstain from the joint EU borrowing scheme.
According to About Hungary, Minister Gulyás, who heads the Prime Minister’s Office, emphasized that Hungary, along with the Czech Republic and Slovakia, managed to avoid joining the scheme, which includes 24 other EU member states. He reiterated Hungary’s consistent policy of not engaging in the war and refusing to support its continuation financially.
Minister Gulyás expressed that the proposed loan would be more of a financial transfer rather than a genuine loan, especially after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky indicated the improbability of repayment. This assertion strengthened the Hungarian government’s stance that the money lent would not be returned to Eur
ope.
During the briefing, Minister Gulyás also highlighted several domestic policy implementations set for January. He announced the completion of the family tax allowance doubling, impacting around one million families. This measure would allow families with two children to retain an additional 83,000 forints monthly, while those with three children would keep 198,000 forints more. Additionally, tax exemptions for mothers under 30 and for mothers under 40 with two children will also be implemented.
Minister Gulyás detailed that the minimum wage would rise to 322,800 forints, and the guaranteed minimum wage would increase to 373,200 forints. He also introduced an 11-point small and medium-sized enterprise development program, which would allocate nearly 190 billion forints to Hungarian businesses by raising the VAT exemption threshold to 20 million forints.
On pensions, Minister Gulyás mentioned that the average pension would surpass 250,000 forints, with the government continuing the 13th-month pension pa
yments and gradually introducing a 14th-month pension. He stated that teachers’ salaries would increase by 10 percent, raising the average to 936,000 forints, and that public administration and social and cultural sector workers would receive an additional 15 percent pay increase.
In response to inquiries, Minister Gulyás reiterated the importance of prioritizing peace efforts over military escalation in Europe, cautioning that financing the war posed significant economic and political risks. He affirmed that Hungary would maintain its sovereignty and financial independence within the EU by rejecting policies that could increase dependence or undermine national decision-making.