Hungary Can Manage Without EU Funds, Economy Minister Says

Hungary, which is struggling to unlock more than $30 billion from the European Union, can manage without those funds, according to the Economic Development Minister Marton Nagy.

Nagy’s comments, published on Tuesday in the Vilaggazdasag newspaper, came less than a week after the government unveiled tax hikes to plug budget holes and fend off EU scrutiny that may lead to fines and stricter oversight over fiscal policy.

The bloc has been withholding the bulk of its financing for Hungary since last year amid a dispute over Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s self-styled “illiberal democracy” that spurns the bloc’s liberal, ...