Hungarian Prime Minister Magyar has set condition for Ukraine regarding opening of first cluster of EU accession negotiations
Granting the Hungarian minority in Zakarpattia rights equivalent to those enjoyed by national minorities in EU countries is a prerequisite for Budapest’s consent to the launch of the first cluster in the pre-accession negotiations between Kyiv and the EU.
This was stated by Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar during a visit to Poland at a joint press conference with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk, reports Censor.NET, citing "European Truth".
Mátyás explained Hungary’s condition
The head of the Hungarian government noted that he had already raised this issue with Tusk, and also hinted that his party, Tisa, coming to power was an opportunity for a "new phase" in relations with Kyiv.
- According to Mádár, Budapest has already sent the relevant signals to the Ukrainian side, and technical consultations have now begun regarding the linguistic, cultural and other rights of Transcarpathian Hungarians.
A "strong signal" from Ukraine
He expressed hope that this round of negotiations would proceed swiftly and successfully.
"For us, this is a condicio sine qua non (a necessary condition – ed.) for us to agree to the opening of the first cluster in the process of Ukraine’s accession to the EU, as it specifically concerns the rule of law and democracy," Madyar stated.
He added that resolving this issue would allegedly "send a strong signal" from Kyiv regarding its readiness to comply with European standards concerning its own citizens prior to the official opening of the negotiation chapter.
