The article examines the anatomy of the current conflict between Hungary and Poland with the European Commission over the mechanism of budget allocation, which created another big "headache" for Brussels against the background of other problems as Brexit and Covid. The relations between the objects of our study had been developing in different ways at certain stages of integration and convergence. In practice, they turned out to be more complicated than the parties initially imagined when deciding on the accession of the Central European countries to the European Union. On the one hand, as the CE countries "get used" to the European system, they feel more confident and, seeing its imperfections, more and more often either deviate from the norms previously adopted in the EU, or offer their own vision. On the other hand, the European Union still refuses to perceive these countries as absolutely equal members, does not see their regional and historical specifics, and tries to adapt them to itself. This increases the latent conflict within the European Union and forms within it a coalition of States that support freer political integration.
Towards the Greater Good? EU Commissioners’ Nationality and Budget Allocation in the European Union