Hungary is holding up Ukraine’s EU accession talks until Kyiv passes laws on minority rights. A bill on education rights for ethnic Hungarians is expected to go before Ukraine’s parliament in October. The legislation could clear an obstacle, but Budapest hasn’t said whether it would then support opening all negotiating clusters.
Minority rights at the centre of the dispute
The dispute centres on the rights of ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine’s Transcarpathia region. Hungary and Ukraine agreed on an 11-point plan to strengthen minority rights in June. Hungary then allowed two negotiating clusters to open in Ukraine’s accession talks, but Budapest has since insisted that Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, pass the required legislation.
Kyiv must pass the laws by the end of the year. It’s preparing legislation on minority education rights, with a parliamentary vote expected in October. A separate bill on language and cultural rights is also due before the Rada later in October. Kyiv hasn’t officially commented on the latest developments.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Anita Orbán said on social media that Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Vsevolod Chsentsov had told her a bill on education rights for national minorities would go to parliament. “We welcome this step,” she said. Orbán added: “Hungary remains interested in the dialogue and in tangible results in the everyday life of the Hungarian community in Transcarpathia.”
Accession talks tied to legislation
The negotiations follow years of strained relations under Viktor Orbán, whose government repeatedly clashed with Kyiv and blocked Ukraine’s progress toward EU membership. Since taking office in May, Péter Magyar has sought to repair ties. He and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had planned to meet, but Magyar made the talks conditional on progress over minority rights.
Ukrainian outlet LIGA.net reported that experts from both countries held intensive talks this week and agreed which parts of the 11-point plan Kyiv could deliver. The negotiations concern laws Hungary says Ukraine must adopt before it will allow further progress in the accession process.
Dániel Hegedűs, deputy director of the Institut für Europäische Politik, told Euronews that the move could reverse recent negative trends in bilateral relations. But he warned that the legislation could face obstacles in the Rada. “Given the absence of stable majorities in the Verkhovna Rada, passing the legislation in October is an ambitious goal and a real test of whether the Ukrainian administration can regain political control over issues of strategic importance to the country's EU integration,” he said.
Veto remains in place
Two weeks earlier, another dispute broke out between the governments. Magyar and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha clashed over Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s C8 regional development initiative. Sybiha accused Magyar of following in Orbán’s footsteps after Magyar said Hungary had been included against its will.
Hungarian public opinion adds another complication. Conservative voters remain wary of closer ties with Kyiv after years of hostility towards Ukraine under Orbán. Defending ethnic Hungarians abroad is popular among conservatives, giving Magyar room to reach a deal.
If Ukraine passes the minority package, Hungary could lift its veto on opening more chapters in Kyiv’s EU accession talks. Hegedűs said it wasn’t clear whether passage would secure Hungarian support for all negotiating clusters or only some. In the most positive scenario, he said, passage of the minority law and Hungarian support for opening all clusters could mark a new era in relations between the two countries. He also said approval would make it harder and “significantly more costly politically at the European level” for Budapest to continue its blockade.