A senior adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin has made an interesting claim about the future of Ukraine’s western territories, including Zakarpattia (Kárpátalja), saying Ukraine will eventually lose regions that once belonged to Hungary, Poland and Romania.

Anton Kobyakov, Putin’s adviser and executive secretary of the organising committee of the Eastern Economic Forum, made the comments while speaking to journalists about the results of the forum.

His remarks echo increasingly frequent statements from senior Russian officials about the possible future of Ukraine’s western regions — including territory that was historically part of the Kingdom of Hungary. According to Kobyakov, these areas are now a “den of evil” where Ukrainian nationalism is being fostered.

‘Ukraine will eventually lose its western territories’

Kobyakov referred to comments previously made by Putin, who has argued that Ukraine will sooner or later lose its western territories.

“Ukraine will sooner or later lose its western lands that belonged to Poland, Romania and Hungary before the Second World War,” Kobyakov said, referring to the Russian president’s position.

He described these territories as the place where Ukrainian nationalism is allegedly being cultivated. Kobyakov went on to draw a highly controversial parallel between modern Ukraine and fascism, claiming that Russia and Ukraine had once fought together against Nazi Germany.

“We fought against the fascists together. How did it happen that they are now at the head of the ‘Ukrainian Reich’?” he said. He further claimed that Ukraine had become “the vanguard of European fascism”.

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Putin has previously mentioned Hungary and Zakarpattia

Kobyakov is not the first senior Russian figure to raise the possibility of Ukraine losing its western territories. Putin himself spoke about the issue at a meeting with Russian naval personnel in St Petersburg earlier this year. He said he believed Ukraine would eventually lose territories that had previously belonged to Poland, Hungary and Romania.

Putin suggested that such a development could occur years or even decades from now, saying that “historically, everything will fall into place”. He also claimed that Russia had been the only guarantor of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, a statement made against the backdrop of Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine.

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has likewise repeatedly referred to the possible partition of Ukraine. On one occasion, he published a fictional map depicting a divided Ukraine in which neighbouring countries, including Hungary, would receive parts of the country’s western territories.

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Kobyakov also made a claim about Kyiv

Kobyakov concluded his latest remarks with another statement reflecting the Kremlin’s historical narrative, saying that Kyiv “was and will remain the mother of Russian cities”.

The comments come as Russia continues its full-scale war against Ukraine, while questions surrounding the future of territories occupied or claimed by Russia remain at the centre of international negotiations and diplomatic efforts.

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