“The Hungarian government has no information on the matter,” he said, adding that “not a single government official has been informed about a ban against them entering the United States.”

The government gives Hungarian - US relations special treatment and although there have been disputes at various depths in the past, these were resolved with a view to maintaining friendly relations, Lázár said.

He said the government was at a loss to understand the background of the US steps, although it does not question their legality. He added, however, that if no further information is provided, this could “poison or destroy the Hungarian-US friendship”.

Lázár said he agreed there was need for an investigation, but it was not clear who should be targeted. The economy ministry is not aware of any wrongdoing at the tax authority NAV.

Although the NAV’s head has been implicated, he said, there is no authentic information about any tax officials being involved, he added. Lázár noted that US law also allows people to be banned from entering the country without any justification.

After the committee session, Lázár told journalists that any suspicion that members of the government, state secretaries or deputy state secretaries were affected by the ban could be ruled out.

He added that it was inconceivable that someone would be banned with “political reasons mixed in”.

Source www.hungarymatters.hu

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MTI photo: Kovács Attila