Hungary insists on restoring Hungarian minority rights in Transcarpathia before EU talks

Hungary has made it clear that it will not allow any negotiations to begin between the European Union and Ukraine regarding its membership until Ukraine addresses the rights of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia.

This strong stance was shared by Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó following his meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha in Brussels, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media. 

Szijjártó emphasized that while EU leaders are eager to expedite Ukraine’s EU accession process, such a move could bring significant risks, particularly from an economic perspective, for the entire continent.

"The EU leaders are eager to push Ukraine into the European Union quickly, but this brings a range of serious dangers," Szijjártó said. He further explained, “They want to open the first chapter of the accession talks right now, which would create a completely new situation and mark the beginning of a whole new stage in Ukraine's EU negotiations.”

However, for Hungary, the key condition for any discussions to proceed is the restoration of rights for ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine's Transcarpathian region, rights which were stripped away in 2015. Szijjártó noted that the Hungarian government had made its expectations clear: “I told my colleague that Hungarian expectations must be understood. Return everything that was good before 2015. This comes down to 11 specific points that need to be addressed, and until this is done, no talks on the chapters of Ukraine’s EU accession can begin.”

The Hungarian minister also revealed that he and Sybiha had agreed that, next week, representatives from both countries would review the 11-point list concerning the rights of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia. Szijjártó described the conversation with Sybiha as candid and expressed hope for progress on this matter.

Sybiha was in Brussels for the Ukraine-NATO Council meeting. Additionally, Szijjártó reminded the press that Hungary will hold a referendum between mid-April and late May on whether to support Ukraine’s EU membership. The Hungarian government intends to use the referendum results in its consultations with Brussels.

By Tamilla Hasanova