UPDATE: Hungary sees chance of EU budget deal being approved on Thursday

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s cabinet chief said on Thursday there is a chance for an agreement on the European Union’s next budget and recovery fund as the bloc’s leaders met for a crunch summit.

“There is a compromise, which is acceptable for Germany and meets the conditions of Hungary and Poland, therefore, there is a chance that we can book this victory at today’s EU summit and heads of state and government can approve the documents … unanimously,” Gergely Gulyas told a press briefing. 

Meanwhile, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Thursday he was “neutral” for now on a compromise struck by Germany with Hungary and Poland over the conditions for access to EU funds.

Rutte, who has insisted that such access should be based on respect for the rule of law, told reporters ahead of a European Union summit in Brussels that he still wanted to clarify certain issues.

The EU leaders are expected to unblock a stalled 1.8 trillion euro ($2.18 trillion) package to help revive the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic and agree on new, more ambitious CO2 emissions reduction goals to fight climate change