The Hungarian government is poised to sign an agreement with the United Arab Emirates for the construction of an ambitious real estate complex in the capital, raising concerns from the city's mayor.
Budapest, the capital of Hungary © Mena Today
The Hungarian government is poised to sign an agreement with the United Arab Emirates for the construction of an ambitious real estate complex in the capital, raising concerns from the city's mayor.
The project aims to revamp a nearly abandoned railway station and its surroundings at a cost of €5 billion.
According to a document released late Thursday on the Hungarian government's website, authorities will sell the land, located not far from the city center, to a private entity selected by the UAE "without conducting a tender."
In return for this "major investment," Hungary commits to carrying out infrastructure work "amounting to at least €800 million."
The nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban continues his controversial endeavor of large-scale projects that alter the city's landscape, including its UNESCO-listed historic center.
In December, Construction Minister Janos Lazar defended the project, referring to it as "maxi-Dubai" in response to media headlines that called it "mini-Dubai."
He insisted that the result would not be mediocre and that it would be an "internationally acclaimed" project.
Cool mountain air, five-star spas, halal restaurants and Arabic menus: this isn't Dubai or Doha in August. It's Poland, a country that has quietly become one of the Gulf's fastest-growing summer destinations.
Turkish violations of Greek airspace have surged back into a common occurrence in 2026, concentrated over the Aegean Sea and increasingly carried out by drones, Kathimerini reported Thursday.
A Lebanese official denied on Thursday a Reuters report that Beirut had agreed with Israel to a shortlist of countries that could send troops to Lebanon to verify the disarmament of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and said it was following up on the issue with Washington.
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