Orbán questions the EC as EU summit begins: where did the money go?

This Thursday and Friday, the Council of Europe is meeting in Brussels, where Viktor Orbán and other EU leaders will be holding talks. The seven-year budget is also expected to be reviewed, with the possibility of additional contributions needed from member states. The Hungarian Prime Minister's message to the European Commission: where did the money go?

Other important issues on the agenda include last week's rebellion in Russia by the leader of Wagner, China, migration issues and the latest developments in the Russia-Ukraine war. The biggest debate is expected to be on the distribution of refugees, with the Hungarian government being one of those that doesn't like the new system. But it's not about any of these that the Hungarian leader posted about. Instead, he shared a tweet about the possibility of the European Commission asking for additional payments in the context of the mid-term review of the EU's seven-year budget.

"We are in the second year of the seven-year budget, and Brussels is running out of money. How did this happen? What happened to the budget? Where did the money go?"

- Orbán asked on Twitter.

In a video posted on his Facebook page, he said that he believes that everyone in Brussels is now asking "where did the money go?". The prime minister said that they want to ask member states for €50 billion to give to Ukraine. "They want more money from us for migration, but they haven't forgotten about themselves either: they are asking for billions of euros to cover a pay rise for bureaucrats in Brussels," he said.

The leaders arriving for the meeting are all giving statements about what they expect from the two days of talks. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke of the importance of doubling the aid for Ukraine, but also mentioned the Wagner rebellion over the weekend. On migration, she said that there were several plans to strengthen the EU's external borders and to fight people smugglers.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that new asylum rules could improve the current situation. He stressed that both Germany and other EU countries need workers – from highly skilled professionals to manual workers – to ensure economic growth. He added that Germany was also committed to working closely with the EU to establish "migration partnerships" with countries outside the Union – for example in Africa – to help reduce the number of people trying to enter the EU without permission.