Ironically, the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán puts it at the start of the all decisive third day of the EU special summit to the Corona recovery package to the point: “We are aware that we need an agreement, we will negotiate under pressure, that an agreement is a Must.” In Orbán’s Veto threat against a link of the financial aid from the total of 1.8 trillion euros, with the great overall package of reconstruction plan and regular budget 2021 to 2027 with the rule of law one of the major hurdles for Orbán’s “Must have”.

Hendrik Kafsack

economic correspondent in Brussels.

F. A. Z. Twitter

The late dinner on Saturday, President of the Council, Charles Michel, continues the theme finally on the agenda. Quickly, it is clear that Orbán is not alone. The heads of the three other Visegrad States, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, in jumping him. Pikant: The Bulgarian Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, the rumschlägt at the moment, even with a corruption scandal, holds a flaming speech for the rule of law mechanism.

Orbán focuses on Sunday morning, especially on the Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, one of the most vehement advocate of the rule of law mechanism in the round to the chiefs: He did not know, “what is the personal reason, the Dutch government has-in-chief, to hate me, or Hungary,” said Orban. “He makes it clear that Hungary, from his point of view respects the rule of law and financially must be punished.” This is not acceptable.

The Hungary plays into the hands, and the focus of other leaders is at the summit tend to be more on Rutte and the other leaders of the “Thrifty Four” from Austria, Denmark and Sweden and their allies Finland, the insistence on a reduction of the reconstruction plan. Less than 400 billion euros for the five in a conversation with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, and the President of the Council, Charles Michel, in the night, it is said in the morning.

“go now annoyed to the Hotel”

The summit is interrupted at the time of the call to midnight officially. On Sunday noon it should go further, but it is on the day itself quickly became clear that lunch can also mean “afternoon” or “early evening”. The mood was bad after the Meeting, reports on EU diplomats.

Merkel and Macron had been annoyed, because the “saving seeds” would not have moved a piece. From the French Elysée Palace, you will be accused of “lack of European solidarity”. Elsewhere, it is in a nutshell: “normal Pseudo-summit drama”. The Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, says in the evening, left: “go now annoyed to the Hotel and then it continues tomorrow.”