The European Commission on Wednesday said Hungary had lost its entitlement to European Union aid worth some €1 billion ($1.03 billion) due to rule of law breaches.

Previously, the EU pressured the country to change its laws in order to tackle conflicts of interest and corruption.

In a report published in July, the European Commission concluded that Hungary did not meet EU democratic standards. Most notable in its failings were said to be corruption, political financing, conflicts of interest and media independence.

Budapest had been told it must make reforms by the end of 2024 or they would expire.

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Hungary was found to have disregarded EU standards and fundamental values and told to implement sufficient reforms. Hungary then agreed to undertake reforms which allowed some funds to be unblocked, but a €19 billion ($20 billion) sum remained frozen.

The EU’s conditionality regulation stated that — without the suspension being lifted — “the first tranche of suspended commitments” amounting to €1 billion would expire at the end of 2024.

Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban has ruled the EU country uninterrupted since 2010, and consolidated power during his time in office, while some of his allies have made large fortunes.

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Orban, the closest political partner of both US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin in the European Union [and a close ally of China], has previously said he would fight to protect money “that is ours.”