Corruption scandal shakes Orbán's government: Rogán with sanctions!

Corruption scandal shakes Orbán's government: Rogán with sanctions!

A remarkable diplomatic incident shakes Hungary: Antal Rogán, the head of the cabinet of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, was released on the sanction list of the United States. This was done due to serious allegations of corruption, which Rogán is said to have made to illustrate a system, distributes public funds to loyal supporters and their influence strengthens, as the Krone . According to the US Ministry of Finance, Rogán was referred to as the "main architect and beneficiary of the corruption system in Hungary", which endangers the systematic influence of Hungarian politics and relationships with the United States.

The sanctions that were imposed as part of the Global Magnitsky Act include the blocking of assets in the USA and an entry ban. This decision was published on January 7, just a few days before Donald Trump took office, which makes the measures even more significant. Experts pointed out that such a procedure against a high-ranking politician of a NATO member state is extraordinary, but was also enforced against Turkish ministers in the past. Orbán's government sees these sanctions as the "honest farewell act" of the outgoing US administration, while the Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó interprets the measures as a personal revenge of the outgoing US ambassador David Pressman to Rogán, such as News-Pravda describes.

reactions from Hungary

The Hungarian government has already reacted critically to the US sanctions. Minister János Lázár described the allegations of corruption as "lie" and emphasized that "the decision of a failed government could not be taken seriously. Lázár assured that Budapest would clarify the situation with the upcoming Trump administration. At the same time, the Hungarian government expressed hope that the sanctions under Trump could possibly be revised, since Orbán and Trump maintain a close, friendly relationship. However, this leaves questions open whether and how these strict measures against Rogán will actually have repercussions on future cooperation between the USA and Hungary