Within the framework of technical consultations on European integration, Kyiv and Budapest have agreed on 10 out of 11 of Hungary’s demands regarding Ukraine’s accession to the EU, Ukraine’s public broadaster Suspilne has said.
According to a report on the broadcaster’s website, the majority of Budapest’s requirements were resolved during the technical talks, but the issue of national minority representation in the Verkhovna Rada remains outstanding and could become a subject of further negotiations with the EU.
The report notes that the representation of the Hungarian national minority in the Ukrainian parliament was the single point on which an agreement could not be reached.
Suspilne, citing informed sources, reports that this issue has been set aside for now, and Hungary has agreed to open the first cluster of negotiations on Ukraine’s EU accession. However, the parties agreed to seek clarifications from the Council of Europe (the Venice Commission) and the OSCE on how this could be implemented. This matter may resurface during the negotiations on the first cluster, which specifically covers human rights.
As previously reported, on June 5, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Taras Kachka stated that the agreements with Hungary do not involve fundamentally new elements, but rather the implementation of the already adopted Action Plan for the protection of the rights of persons belonging to national minorities in Ukraine with minor adjustments.
Shortly before this, Hungary lifted its 17-month veto on Ukraine’s progress toward EU accession.
At the end of May, Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar stated that he would be ready to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after the conclusion of technical consultations between Budapest and Kyiv aimed at resolving what the Hungarian side considers the problem of Hungarian minorities in Ukraine, suggesting the meeting take place somewhere in the Hungarian-speaking regions of Ukraine.
