According to Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar, the loans were approved during the previous administration led by Viktor Orbán and were extended to the government of North Macedonian Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski in two separate tranches.
The financing package carries a fixed annual interest rate of 3.25% and a 15-year repayment period, including a three-year grace period. Hungarian authorities estimate that the interest compensation associated with the arrangement will cost the country’s state budget more than €247 million over the life of the loans.
The entire credit line is backed by a 100% Hungarian state guarantee, despite reports that North Macedonia was assigned a relatively high risk rating by Eximbank. The government is examining whether the terms of the agreement adequately protected Hungarian taxpayers and reflected appropriate lending standards. The review forms part of a broader investigation into four major foreign financing transactions carried out through Eximbank, with a combined value of approximately €2.74 billion.
Magyar questioned the financial rationale behind the arrangement, noting that North Macedonia received more favourable borrowing conditions than those available to many Hungarian businesses, citizens and even the Hungarian state itself. He said the unusually low interest rate, combined with the full state guarantee, justified a comprehensive review of the transaction.
The investigation comes against the backdrop of close political relations between Budapest and Skopje, particularly between Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party and Prime Minister Mickoski’s VMRO-DPMNE. Hungary has in recent years emerged as one of North Macedonia’s strongest political supporters within the European Union, backing the country’s European integration while also expanding bilateral economic cooperation.
While the inquiry does not automatically imply wrongdoing, its findings could have broader political and financial implications, raising questions about the use of state-backed export financing, fiscal transparency and the role of government-supported lending in advancing foreign policy objectives.
