Brussels. The European Commission said Wednesday it has proposed unlocking a first 4.2 billion euros ($4.8 billion) for Hungary and remitting it to the bloc's student mobility and research schemes, after Budapest's new government delivered promised reforms.

Prime Minister Peter Magyar launched a reform drive upon winning office this year, aiming to regain access to more than 16 billion euros that Brussels had frozen over rule-of-law concerns during nationalist leader Viktor Orban's rule.

"Hungary has taken important steps to strengthen the rule of law and protect the Union's financial interests," EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said.

"Today, we are proposing to unlock €4.2 billion and reopen the doors of Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe to Hungarian students and researchers."

The plan needs to be approved by member states within a month, the Commission said.

It cited reforms on public procurement and tackling corruption, including reinforcing the powers of an anti-graft watchdog, and the establishment of a comprehensive asset declaration system among the reasons for the decision.

"With the important steps taken by the government of Prime Minister Peter Magyar to safeguard EU taxpayers' money, billions of euros can now flow again," said Piotr Serafin, the EU commissioner for budget, anti-fraud and public administration.
 

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