Trump administration lifts sanctions against Orban's cabinet chief

Astrid Lund - Betty MacDonald fan club organizer: "Why doesn't that surprise me? Trump and Orban have a lot in common!!!"------------------------------------------------ Trump administration lifts sanctions against Orban's cabinet chief Reuters • 1 hour • 1 minute read Washington (Reuters) - The United States is lifting its sanctions against one of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's closest confidants. Continuing to keep Antal Rogan on the list is inconsistent with U.S. foreign policy interests, a State Department spokeswoman in Washington said on Tuesday. Rogan has headed Orban's cabinet office since 2015. Joe Biden's administration placed Rogan on the sanctions list shortly before handing over power to Donald Trump on January 7, accusing him of corruption and nepotism. The government in Budapest immediately announced that it would challenge the move once Trump became president. Orban and his national-conservative Fidesz party are among Trump's most vocal supporters in Europe. During Biden's presidency, however, relations between the United States and Hungary cooled considerably, primarily due to Orban's closeness to Russia during the war in Ukraine. There are also regular conflicts with Orban within the European Union; he has been repeatedly confronted with corruption allegations for years, although he has denied them all.