In Berlin, Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar warned against tying the EU budget to other issues, emphasizing Hungary's strong ties with Germany and the need for a fair, unified approach to Ukraine funding. The talks with Chancellor Merz covered defense, economic cooperation, EU enlargement, and the long-term budget (MFF). Magyar criticized Hungary's perceived costs of protecting Europe’s borders and urged that Hungary’s contributions and policy preferences, especially regarding agricultural and cohesion policies, be respected in any budget deal.