Poland and Hungary are the bad guys of the European Union, who have been scratching each other’s backs for some time, reports Poltico. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine now seems to Vladimir to cause a split. The EU’s latest attempt to punish Budapest for its stranglehold on democracy could be the moment Poland shows how appalled it is by its former accomplice.

The latest policy to annoy Warsaw is Viktor Orbán’s veto of the €18 billion EU aid package for Ukraine and the comprehensive agreement on the minimum corporate tax. While before Putin’s invasion, Warsaw might have seen this as a legitimate move, now that he is getting tough on Russia and wants to help Ukraine, Orbán’s ruthless tactics could tip over the line.

The debate will culminate in the coming days, when the governments will vote on freezing additional funds for Hungary.

The Commission is scheduled to make a formal proposal for the move on Wednesday. According to EU officials, Poland will choose whether to continue to provide political cover to Budapest or to secede from it. The hot porridge will then be given to the EU capitals, who will be asked to conditionally approve Hungary’s spending plan in the framework of the bloc’s post-pandemic recovery fund, as well as to freeze 7.5 billion euros of ordinary funds.

The decision should be made at the meeting of the finance ministers currently scheduled for December 6, but a clearer picture will be available at the meeting of the new ambassadors on Thursday. To some extent, instead of Poland’s decision, it will be more symbolic, pointing in the direction of political reorganization within the EU, rather than having a concrete effect. Even if Poland and Italy – where a conservative government containing pro-Russian elements was formed in the September elections – were to vote with Hungary, it is certain that every decision would be adopted with a qualified majority, which means 55 percent of the country that makes up 65 percent of the bloc’s population. This means that Hungary would receive the approval, but would not receive any money until it completes all the requested reforms.

It is not yet clear how Poland will vote, as it has its own interests.

He is trying to squeeze EU funds from Brussels and is showing little signs of willingness to act. As next fall’s elections look more and more controversial, it is in the government’s interest to win the Commission’s approval for the release of funds intended for the country for treatments, the newspaper reports.

Opening image: In the image published by the Prime Minister’s Press Office, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (b) and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (j) hold talks in the Prime Minister’s Office in Warsaw on December 3, 2021. Viktor Orbán takes part in a working meeting of European conservative party leaders in Warsaw. MTI/Minister’s Press Office/Zoltán Fischer