Hungary Moves to Resolve Erasmus Dispute Amid Broader EU Tensions

Hungary is seeking to resolve its dispute with Brussels over the Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe funds, which has left 21 Hungarian universities excluded from these popular programmes. The government has amended a law criticized by Brussels while accusing the bloc of intentionally dragging out negotiations.

The conflict over Erasmus began in December 2022, when the European Commission barred more than 30 Hungarian institutions, including 21 universities, from accessing the funds. The decision cited concerns about academic freedom, transparency, conflicts of interest, and the presence of government-linked figures on university management boards.

In response, Hungary's National Assembly recently amended the law governing public interest asset management foundations (known as "kekva" in Hungarian). These foundations, which oversee the affected institutions, have been a focal point of EU concerns. The new amendment seeks to address the Commission's issues by barring high-level politicians from joining the management boards and strengthening conflict-of-interest declarations. Hungary plans to notify Brussels of the changes "in the coming days," said János Bóka, Hungary’s EU affairs minister.

The government has accused the European Commission of stalling progress. A statement from the Ministry of Justice claimed that, despite Hungary's efforts to resolve the situation, the Commission had "remained silent, stalled for time, sought excuses, and lacked professional arguments."

"Brussels is lying, as it has been exactly one year today since we sent them the regulatory proposal to advance the negotiations (November 13, 2023). They are lying because since then, we have held several in-person discussions about the proposal," the statement read.

The new notification is expected to prompt the Commission to assess whether the amended legislation sufficiently addresses its concerns. Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders expressed cautious optimism, stating that a resolution could be reached before the end of the year but emphasized that Hungary must fully address the risk of conflicts of interest in public trust fund management boards.

Hungary's exclusion from Erasmus and Horizon funding is part of a broader EU conditionality mechanism that has also frozen €6.3 billion in cohesion funds over issues such as corruption and public procurement irregularities. This is part of a larger package of €11.7 billion that remains blocked due to persistent rule-of-law concerns.

In addition, Hungary has yet to access most of its €10.4 billion recovery fund for similar reasons. The last time the European Commission released funds to Hungary (€10.2 billion in December 2023), it faced backlash and legal challenges from the European Parliament, underlining the tense relationship between Budapest and Brussels.

Speaking in a televised interview last month, Minister of Public Administration and Regional Development Tibor Navracsics expressed his hope that an agreement will be reached next year, allowing Hungarian students studying at foundation-maintained higher education institutions to once again participate in the program.