The future leader of Hungary, Péter Magyar, wants the Hungarian national minority in Ukraine to be granted additional rights before approving official negotiations for Ukraine's accession to the EU, Bloomberg reports, citing sources familiar with the situation, according to UNN.
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This issue was discussed during Magyar's meeting with European Council President António Costa in Brussels on Wednesday. The EU is putting pressure on Magyar to drop the outgoing government's objections to the formal start of Ukraine's membership negotiations, sources said.
"Magyar set conditions that largely echo the list of 11 demands provided by ousted Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to Kyiv in 2024, concerning the rights of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine and access to education in the Hungarian language."
Although Magyar called the meeting with Costa "useful and constructive," the mood was less positive than during the meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen earlier that day, sources said.
During the talks with Costa, Magyar "raised the issue of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine." According to an EU official, the talks were successful and also covered the bloc's budget, competitiveness, and the informal meeting of EU leaders in Cyprus last week.
"Magyar's tough stance is likely to disappoint officials in Kyiv and Brussels, who hoped that Orbán's departure would provide momentum to Ukraine's membership bid, especially regarding the formal start of negotiations on a range of policy issues for which the country has met the necessary criteria," the publication writes.
Orbán had been blocking this process, arguing that the rights of the Hungarian diaspora in Ukraine need to be strengthened. Ukraine has stated it is ready to fulfill the outlined conditions and has repeatedly claimed that the rights of the Hungarian minority in the country are protected, the publication writes.
Magyar stated earlier this week that he wants to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in June to discuss the issue. The goal was to improve the situation of the Hungarian minority in the Zakarpattia region in western Ukraine and "support their ability to remain in their homeland," he said.
"It is time for Ukraine to put an end to the restrictions that have been in place for over a decade," Magyar wrote on X. He said that ethnic Hungarians living there must "regain all their cultural, linguistic, administrative, and higher education rights so that they can once again become equal and respected citizens of Ukraine."
Ukraine has not yet confirmed any meeting, as Zelenskyy's schedule for June has not yet been finalized, his aide Dmytro Lytvyn told reporters this week.
Schedule not yet finalized - OP reacts after Magyar's proposal to meet with Zelenskyy29.04.26, 12:12
Although Magyar, who will be sworn in early next month, has promised to restore the eroded rule of law in Hungary and return his country to the European fold, he shares Orbán's position that Budapest bears responsibility for ethnic Hungarians in neighboring countries, the publication writes. His position has already caused friction with another neighbor and EU member, Slovakia.
Magyar visited Brussels this week to find a path to a deal to unlock about 10 billion euros from EU recovery funds, which were suspended due to growing concerns over the rule of law and corruption during Orbán's 16 years in power. Budapest is now racing against time to save aid from the EU's post-pandemic program, which will expire at the end of August if not used.
Costa and many of the bloc's capitals are pushing to advance the long-stalled process regarding Ukraine's membership and want it to move forward in the coming weeks, the publication writes. At the summit in Cyprus last week, EU leaders made it clear that the preconditions for starting the first phase of Ukraine's membership process exist.