Hungarian minister subject to US sanctions. Orban's government will wait for Trump to respond

Tuesday, the Department of State USA informed Fr imposing sanctions for corruption on the head of Orban's cabinet, Antal Rogan. As it was emphasized, a close associate of the Hungarian prime minister is an example of “the takeover of the state by oligarchs and undemocratic entities.”

Minister of Construction and Transport Hungarian Janos Lazar, quoted on Thursday by the daily “Magyar Hirlap”, stated that placing Rogan on the sanctions list is a “baseless (…) political provocation.”

He added that the decision made by the administration, which after its defeat in the elections, will only be in power for a few more weeks cannot be taken seriously. In his opinion, placing Rogan under sanctions is “an act of revenge of the pathetic and ineffective” US ambassador David Pressman, who will soon end his mission in Budapest, for whom – according to Lazar – the US administration wanted to “improve his mood” in this way.

The head of the Ministry of Construction also expressed his belief that the US decision constitutes a blatant interference in Hungary's sovereignty and internal affairs, which is “undignified by an allied country” and significantly harms Hungarian-American relations. As he emphasized, “only Hungary can declare a Hungarian citizen innocent or guilty.”

He announced efforts to lift restrictions after being sworn in Donald Trump for president of the USA.

During a press conference called on Tuesday, the outgoing US ambassador in Budapest, Pressman, who has long been critical of the government in Budapest, described Rogan as “the main architect, contractor and beneficiary of the system of corruption” in Hungary.

In a statement, the American Ministry of Finance recalled that due to the lack of action on corruption in the public procurement system, Hungary recently lost EUR 1 billion in EU funds.