Hungary celebrates its 20th anniversary of European Union membership
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Exactly 20 years ago, on 1 May 2004, the European Union underwent the biggest enlargement in its history: among 9 others, Hungary became a member state of the EU.
On 1 May 2004, the number of European Union member states increased from 15 to 25, with the admission of Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Euronews assesses the enlargement as follows: the economy and society of the EU have benefited from the enlargement, but there are policy gaps that arose in recent years. Overall, the EU saw a 20% increase in population and almost the same in its territory. Total GDP increased, but only by circa 9%, while GDP per capita fell.
In political terms, the launch of the Article 7 procedure against Hungary and Poland, which can be used in the event of systemic breaches of fundamental values, and the invocation of the rule of law mechanism against Hungary to curb financial abuses, were both politically disruptive.
Taking stock of the EU accession in Hungary
Átlátszó.hu looked at the last 20 years through Hungarian eyes, writing that the country has gained several benefits, perhaps the most important of which is the significant economic support Hungary has received, as well as the freedom to travel and work along with the free flow of capital in the region.
The abolition of price-increasing tariffs has made shopping cheaper and safer, and exports of Hungarian products have increased, and the Schengen Agreement ensures free travel within the EU.
Without EU membership, Hungary’s GDP would be 20% lower. Between 2004 and 2022, Hungary received more than EUR 83 billion in funds, four times larger than what it paid into the joint budget: it is clear that Hungary is a net economic beneficiary of the European Union.
However, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has launched multiple investigations into suspected fraud in Hungary, due to the misuse of EU funds. In 2022, the country had the highest number of suspected fraud cases in the whole of the Union, according to the office.
One thing is yet to come to Hungary: the euro
Although a frequent topic of debate, Hungary has yet to adopt the euro. While according to the governor of the Hungarian National Bank, György Matolcsy, joining the eurozone can be feasible before 2030, Átlátszó.hu is more pessimistic. It asserts that the country is not yet ready to adopt the joint currency any time soon,
“because Hungary cannot meet the necessary requirements: inflation is too steep and the Hungarian budget deficit is too high.”
Out of the others that joined the EU at the same time as Hungary, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, now all pay with the euro.
20 years ago, accession to the European Union was welcomed with great joy
Szabad Európa looked at newspapers of the time, finding that people were excited about joining the European Union: the papers had been full of EU news and interviews for weeks before 1 May, with only a few articles discussing the potential downsides of the membership.
Is it really an occasion to celebrate????
And here you go again Maria, would you vote for HUXIT and also leaving nato? I mean, i would cause i dont want this blackmailing PM You have on those alliances. I will just take my family out of this country as soon as it happens. Hungary goes agains the values and foundations of those unions.
If Hungary left the EU, where would it get money from. 4 times more received than paid in. And 20% higher than expected GDP.
Sounds to me that the rest of the EU would be better off if Hungary quit.