Hungarian minister slams US sanctions against Antal Rogán as ‘unfounded provocation’
The United States’ decision to put Antal Rogán, the head of the Prime Minister’s Cabinet Office, on a sanctions list is an “unfounded political provocation”, the transport and construction minister said on Wednesday.
Responding to a question at a press conference on another subject, János Lázár said: “The decision of a failed government with only weeks left in power, based on the petty revenge of a failed and unsuccessful US ambassador, cannot be taken seriously.” Further, the statement on systemic corruption in strategic sectors “is a lie, plain and simple”, he said.
Lázár said the move was a crude interference with Hungarian sovereignty and domestic affairs, “unusual and unfair from an ally”, and harmful to US-Hungarian ties. “Neither side of the aisle can dispute that the innocence or guilt of a Hungarian citizen is for the Hungarian state to decide,” he said. Hungary’s government stands by Antal Rogán, Lázár said. The government will contact the Trump administration as soon as he is inaugurated to clear up the issue within a legal procedure, and will take a stand for Rogán “as we would for any other Hungarian citizen”, he said.
He said the sanctions list was “an excellent tool in the US’ hands to put pressure on a country and push through its own views and interests”. Asked whether he had seen proof of the actions that had landed Rogán on the list, Lázár said “I suspect this is more based on suggestions.” He said he had seen no proof of wrongdoing in the case of Ildiko Vida either, a former head of the Hungarian tax and customs authority who was put on a sanctions list in 2014.
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