{"id":3335,"date":"2025-03-16T17:20:28","date_gmt":"2025-03-16T17:20:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/?p=3335"},"modified":"2025-03-16T17:20:28","modified_gmt":"2025-03-16T17:20:28","slug":"hungarys-economy-struggles-amid-rising-corruption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/2025\/03\/16\/hungarys-economy-struggles-amid-rising-corruption\/","title":{"rendered":"Hungary\u2019s Economy Struggles Amid Rising Corruption"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Ishtwan Kamel<\/strong>
16\/03\/2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Hungary\u2019s corruption problem deepens, it is the economy and its citizens who continue to bear the brunt of these scandals, with the country\u2019s international standing taking a significant hit.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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Hungary\u2019s economy is facing severe challenges, with GDP growth stagnating at just 0.5% in 2024. Prime Minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s government has been forced to raise taxes and the central bank\u2019s interest rate, now the highest in the EU at 6.75%. Meanwhile, the forint continues to lose value against both the euro and the dollar, and inflation is soaring, causing mounting social unrest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In light of these issues, Hungary is in dire need of EU financial assistance, with over \u20ac1 billion expected from special funds. However, these funds have been frozen by the European Commission as of January 2025, following accusations that the Hungarian government is systematically undermining the rule of law, suppressing press freedom, and allowing corruption to spiral out of control. The country ranked as the most corrupt in the EU for two consecutive years, matching corruption levels in countries like China and Cuba.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Corruption scandals have been a major focus in both Hungarian and European media. One such case involves Nehez Kovek Kft., a transportation company owned by Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s father, Gy\u0151z\u0151. In 2018, the company received nearly \u20ac1 million from a firm working on railway repairs near Lake Balaton. In 2021, the company was sold to Lajos Bihari, an Orb\u00e1n ally, and was later dissolved under suspicious circumstances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another major scandal surrounds Istv\u00e1n Tiborcz, the prime minister\u2019s son-in-law, who has enjoyed significant government-backed support for his businesses in luxury real estate and logistics. In 2023, his BDPST Group completed the Dorothea Hotel in Budapest with a \u20ac105 million loan from MBH Bank, controlled by Orb\u00e1n\u2019s close friend, L\u0151rinc M\u00e9sz\u00e1ros. The hotel was later listed as a recommended accommodation for European dignitaries attending the European Political Community Summit in Budapest.<\/p>\n\n\n

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In response to the growing corruption, the U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on Viktor Orb\u00e1n\u2019s chief of staff, Antal Rog\u00e1n, barring him from entering the U.S. and freezing his assets. Rog\u00e1n, who controls much of Hungary\u2019s media landscape, has been accused of funnelling EU funds to Orb\u00e1n\u2019s allies, further consolidating power within the ruling Fidesz party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Hungary\u2019s ties with Russia have also raised concerns. Defense Minister Krist\u00f3f Szalay-Bobrovniczky, a close Orb\u00e1n ally, has been linked to controversial business dealings, including a deal for railway carriages between Hungary, Russia, and Egypt. These dealings have fuelled suspicions of corrupt cooperation between Hungarian elites and Kremlin-affiliated businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, Hungary has been accused of meddling in the politics of other EU nations. In 2022, Hungary\u2019s MKB Bank, owned by Orb\u00e1n\u2019s ally M\u00e9sz\u00e1ros, provided a \u20ac10.6 million loan to France\u2019s far-right party, Rassemblement National, to support its election campaign. The move raised concerns of interference in France\u2019s political affairs and further deepened Hungary\u2019s reputation as a supporter of pro-Russian, anti-EU movements.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Hungarian opposition politicians assessed this move as an unjustified image risk for the whole of Hungary, which could theoretically be accused of interfering in France’s internal affairs. Nevertheless, V. Orban personally ordered this financial transaction, ensuring that the Hungarian central bank would not be involved in verifying the legality of the transaction. It is possible that in this way he wanted to demonstrate his loyalty to V. Putin, who, with the help of an extensive corruption web, has turned the Hungarian ruling elite into his obedient satellites. In general, as a result of the spread of corruption in the country under the personal patronage of V. Orban, the national economy and ordinary citizens of Hungary suffer!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Ishtwan Kamel16\/03\/2025 As Hungary\u2019s corruption problem deepens, it is the economy and its citizens who continue to bear the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3335","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editors-choise"],"views":704,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3335","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3335"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3335\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3339,"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3335\/revisions\/3339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3335"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3335"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/geopolitic.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3335"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}