Ministry urges rights protections for Transcarpathian Hungarians at UNESCO
Violations of the rights of Transcarpathian Hungarians and the persecution of Christians must both be fought against, Bence Rétvári of the ministry of human resources said on Thursday at the 40th General Assembly of UNESCO in Paris.
The parliamentary state secretary told MTI by phone that he gave a briefing on the attacks and deprivations ethnic Hungarians face in Ukraine, citing the education and language laws and the authorities turning a blind eye to attacks against Hungarian institutions, as well as their toleration of anti-Hungarian nationalist marches.
Rétvári in his speech called on UNESCO and its member states to make greater efforts to protect the rights of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia in the areas of education and culture.
Asked whether Ukraine’s new president may improve chances of resolving the various problematic issues, he said he was confident.
He also said in his speech that Christianity was the most persecuted religion in the world and Hungary put a premium on taking appropriate action to combat it.
Rétvári underlined Hungary’s standpoint on migration, namely that help should be delivered to people where they were in need, and he noted Hungarian help to reconstruct and equip schools and hospitals in regions torn apart by conflict.
Rétvári announced Hungary’s application for membership of UNESCO’s Executive Council for the period 2019-2023.
Hungary proposals accepted for NATO statement on Ukraine
Hungary’s proposals in connection with a recent declaration of NATO ambassadors on Ukraine were accepted “after the last minute”, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Thursday.
Hungary on Wednesday vetoed a joint declaration of NATO ambassadors on Ukraine, insisting that it failed to contain reference to Ukraine’s obligation to fully respect the rights of ethnic Hungarians living there.
Announcing the veto, Szijjártó said that Hungary was not prepared to sacrifice the interests of 150,000 ethnic Hungarians in western Ukraine to geopolitical interests.
“In the end, our proposals have been taken into consideration so that the joint declaration now firmly supports the Hungarian community that has been deprived of its rights,” Szijjártó said in a statement.
The declaration calls on Ukraine to comply with international rules and standards, he said.
“This again makes it clear that Ukraine must hand back rights to ethnic minorities in all areas of life including education,” he said.
The veto was worth the effort in the interest of Transcarpathian Hungarians, Szijjártó said, adding that the 150,000-strong community there can rely on the Hungarian government’s backing in the future as well.
Hungary’s veto of NATO Ukraine declaration due to minority rights
Hungary vetoed a joint declaration of NATO ambassadors on Ukraine, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó noted at the Eurasia Forum in Budapest on Wednesday, as it did not compel Ukraine to hand back rights it stripped from the ethnic Hungarian minority.
The minister said that
Hungary was not prepared to sacrifice the interests of 150,000 ethnic Hungarians in western Ukraine to geopolitical interests.
Hungary submitted several amendment proposals to the declaration stating that Ukraine must fulfill its duties towards minorities according to international law, and several of the proposals were based on the tenets of the Council of Europe and the United Nations. Since these proposals were rejected, “we had no other choice than to veto the declaration”, Szijjártó added.
Szijjártó said the interests of the 150,000-strong Hungarian minority in western Ukraine “are not so important on the other side of the ocean”.
“But we live here in central and eastern Europe, and the interest of a Hungarian is a enough reason for us to stand by him.”
Stripping the rights of a minority belonging to one of the NATO member states should at least merit mention in such a document, Szijjártó said, adding that the document should include a clause on reinstating those rights.
Hungary rejects Ukraine’s ‘baseless accusations’
Ministry official calls on Ukrainian authorities to regard ethnic Hungarians partners, not enemy
Ukrainian authorities should consider their country’s ethnic Hungarian community as a partner, not an enemy, the Hungarian foreign ministry’s state secretary said on Friday, two days before Ukraine’s snap elections.
Levente Magyar held a press conference after a meeting of the ambassadors of EU and NATO countries convened by the foreign ministry to brief them about recent developments affecting the neighbouring country’s Hungarian minority.
Ukrainian authorities have taken “unprecedentedly hostile moves” in an attempt to discourage Transcarpathia Hungarians from going to the polls on July 21, he said.
On one instance “a combat squad raided the homes of Hungarian families while they were asleep,” Magyar said, adding that these families were known to support KMKSZ, the major political organisation representing Transcarpathia’s ethnic Hungarians.
Magyar said that in another move, the Ukrainian foreign ministry had pledged to ban Hungarian ministers from entering Transcarpathia. This is an indication that the ministry continues to pursue the policy of former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, he said.
This kind of rhetoric and moves against minorities have long been rejected either within the EU or NATO, alliances Ukraine is striving to join, Magyar said.
Hungary does not want to interfere with the Ukrainian elections in any way, he said, adding however that the Hungarian community would hopefully be represented in the new parliament.
Fidesz slams Ukraine’s ‘anti-Hungarian’ election campaign
Fidesz MEP Andrea Bocskor has slammed what she called an “anti-Hungarian” election campaign in Ukraine, saying it was based on “the intimidation of ethnic Hungarian leaders, journalists, teachers and organisations”.
“It is not enough for Kiev to have declared its aspirations for European integration on multiple occasions,” Bocskor said in a statement, stressing that Ukraine “must also adhere to European rules”.
Recounting her address to Monday’s plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Bocskor said
Ukraine’s central election committee had once again rejected the establishment of an electoral district with a Hungarian majority in western Ukraine’s Transcarpathia region.
She insisted this meant that representatives of the Hungarian community would face “unequal conditions” in the elections.
Bocskor said that
while the Transcarpathian Hungarian community had hoped for swift changes after the spring presidential election, “the grave abuses seen in the campaign give cause for concern.”
Among the alleged abuses, she cited vote-buying, the fielding of candidates with similar names and no political background, the misleading of voters and “intimidation by the secret service”.
“The Hungarian minority living in Ukraine deserves the same rights and opportunities as the ones the majority is entitled to, which is why they have a right to representation,” Bocskor added.
On Monday, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó lambasted as “unprecedented, unacceptable and un-European” a series of raids carried out by Ukrainian authorities of the homes of the leaders of Transcarpathian Hungarian organisations.
He also said Hungary saw Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s new president, as a “new hope” and hoped that his recent encouraging statements would become reality.
If the new president’s words are reflected in actions and if the Transcarpathian Hungarian community regains its rights, Hungary will be happy to get back to cooperating closely with Ukraine, Szijjártó told Hungarian reporters during a break in a meeting with his EU counterparts in Brussels.
Hungary refurbished reformed church in W Ukraine
Hungarian FM calls for end to ‘politics of interference and lecturing’ at OSCE meeting
Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó on Tuesday called for respect for each country’s domestic policy decisions and an end to the “politics of interference and lecturing”, at an informal meeting of foreign ministers of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) member states.
At the meeting in Strbske Pleso (Csorbató), northern Slovakia, Szijjártó said the OSCE offered a forum for “dialogue between the west and the east”. Sensible dialogue is of great importance for central European countries “because they always lost in [those] conflicts”, he added.
“The time for partnership instead of lecturing has come in international politics,” he said. It should be accepted that all nations know what’s best for them, he added.
Speaking to Hungarian public media on the sidelines of the meeting, Szijjártó said that ethnic minorities’ rights had been harmed recently in eastern Europe. “Until those rights are respected, it is hard to talk about calm in international politics,” he said.
Hungarian ethnic minorities in Ukraine have been suffering from attacks to their right to the use of their mother tongue and education, he said. Details HERE.
“We expect the new Ukrainian president and leadership to put an end to that unlawful state of affairs,” he said.
Another task is to unequivocally state that the persecution of Christians in the world is unacceptable, Szijjártó said.
“The persecution of Christians must be stopped, but so must the practice of many western European approaches suggesting that anti-Christian sentiment is the last acceptable form of discrimination,” he said.
Official: Hungary trusts it can normalise ties with Ukraine
Zsolt Németh, the head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee, on Friday expressed hope that recent changes in Ukraine will enable the restoration of Hungarian-Ukrainian ties.
Addressing the 27th Transcarpathian Summer University in Synevyrs’ka Poliana (Felsoszinever) in western Ukraine, Németh said Hungary hoped that the outcome of Ukraine’s recent presidential election meant that “the Poroshenko era has come to an end and with it so will the institutionalised, centrally organised anti-Hungarian measures”.
Hungary has high hopes for the future policies of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Németh said.
At present, he said, Hungary’s job is to get the major world powers to see how Ukraine’s education and language laws violate minority rights in the country.
Hungary therefore will continue to block Ukraine’s aspirations to join NATO and will continue to stand up for Transcarpathian Hungarians, he added.
Transcarpathian Hungarian Cultural Association (KMKSZ) leader and member of the Ukrainian parliament László Brenzovics said the situation in Ukraine would remain unchanged in the short run. However, he said the events of the last five years have shown that “a lot can be accomplished with faith and perseverance.” Brenzovics said that in spite of the pressures faced by Transcarpathian Hungarians, the community had accomplished a lot during this time, mainly thanks to the support of the Hungarian government.
Hungary to propose to Ukraine restoring ties, says foreign minister
Hungary will propose to Ukraine’s new president that bilateral relations should “return to the old path”, an era when the Hungarian community in the neighboring country’s Transcarpathia region could fully exercise their acquired minority rights, the foreign minister said on the sidelines of an international conference on Wednesday.
Szijjártó attended a conference on reforms in Ukraine in Toronto.
Speaking to MTI by phone, Péter Szijjártó noted that the previous president, Petro Poroshenko, pursued an anti-Hungarian policy.
The education and language laws adopted during his term violate the Hungarian community’s rights, he said.
The laws are in conflict with European standards, as well as with international law and bilateral obligations, he said.
Now with a new president in office there is hope that Ukraine will not continue to pursue an anti-Hungarian policy, he said, adding that Volodymyr Zelensky’s statements “had so far been encouraging”, giving hope for optimism.
The question is whether Zelensky will make sure that legal changes are implemented to “return the rights of the Hungarian community” after the autumn parliamentary elections, Szijjártó said.
“Should this happen, Hungary will then support convening a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine committee,” the foreign minister said.
Hungary will then also be ready to carry out a comprehensive economic cooperation plan with Ukraine including a 50 million euro tied aid programme supporting road construction in Transcarpathia, Szijjártó said.
Hungary also stands ready to resume the work of the joint economic and environmental protection committees, and to continue its Transcarpathia economic development programme, he added.
Szijjártó said he had held bilateral talks with Stepan Kubiv, the deputy prime minister of Ukraine, Kurt Volker, the US’s special representative for Ukraine and Pekka Haavisto, Finland’s foreing minister.
Government: Promising signs new Ukraine president will help resolve Hungarian community issues
A Hungarian foreign ministry official expressed hope on Wednesday that Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s recently elected president, would help resolve the negative situation affecting ethnic Hungarian communities stemming from recent enactment of repressive laws.
The first statements by the new president are reason for “cautious hope”, Tamás Menczer, state secretary for communications and international relations, said at an event in Gárdony, in central Hungary, focusing on Hungarian summer camps for children from families affected by conflict in eastern Ukraine.
Hungary has always pursued good neighbourly relations with Ukraine and it had, until recently, supported Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations, as well as visa its liberalisation efforts.
“The language law approved during the time of the previous president was a stab in the back because it aimed at suppressing minority languages in all areas of life,” he said.
“This is an international problem, not just a bilateral one,” he added.
Commenting on the camp, he noted that 242 children are spending their holidays at Lake Velence and the ministry has contributed 25 million forints (EUR 76,000) towards their upkeep.
Hungarian President Áder has bilateral talks with new Ukrainian President Zelensky
Hungarian President János Áder met his new Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky and discussed the problems facing Ukraine’s ethnic Hungarian community.
After Zelensky’s inauguration in Kiev on Monday, Áder proposed in the talks setting up a joint committee to serve as a forum for discussing all disagreements between Hungary and Ukraine.
Speaking to MTI afterwards, Áder said his counterpart supported the proposal.
“Our interest lies in fostering equally stable and peaceful relations with Ukraine — our most populous neighbour — as with our other neighbours,” Áder said.
“We’re open to this. At the same time, I also made it clear that the Hungarian community of Transcarpathia isn’t asking for more than for Ukraine to honour the obligations it is bound to by its constitution and international treaties,” he added.
Áder said the rights of Ukraine’s Hungarian community were more restricted than they had been under the Soviet Union. “This is unacceptable in a democracy.”
He welcomed, however, Zelensky’s openness to discussing and resolving disputed issues relating to Transcarpathian Hungarians, such as those of dual citizenship or Ukraine’s education and language laws.
Áder invited his new counterpart to visit Hungary with a view to discussing other matters such as the upgrade of border stations and the environmental protection of border areas.
Áder described his meeting with Zelensky as an “encouraging start” and said that hopefully it would soon be followed up with a bilateral meeting of experts and eventually another presidential meeting.
Hungarian foreign minister: Ukraine’s language law ‘unacceptable’
The language law that Ukraine’s parliament approved on Thursday is unacceptable, the Hungarian foreign minister told public media on Thursday.
The law which violates the rights of the Hungarian community in the neighbouring country reflects the ideals of outgoing President Petro Poroshenko who pursued an anti-Hungarian policy, Peter Szijjarto said.
Voters in Ukraine elected a new president, Volodymyr Zelensky, with a large majority in Sunday’s ballot, Szijjártó said, adding that it put an end to the Poroshenko era.
He expressed hope that the situation concerning the rights of the Hungarian community in Ukraine could be “clarified in a dialogue with the country’s new president on the basis of mutual respect and in pursuit of finding a solution to the issue”.
“We will do our utmost to restore ties between Ukraine and Hungary” after Zelensky enters office, Szijjártó said.
“Our aim is to have friendship return between Hungary and Ukraine and the outcome of this recent presidential election gives some hope for that,” the foreign minister said.
The law which makes the use of Ukrainian compulsory as an official language in several areas was passed with a large majority. Hungarian organisations in the Carpathian Basin protested against the legislation saying that it eliminated all of the minorities’ rights to the use of their own language.
Ukraine should suspend language bill debate, says govering Fidesz
Ukraine should suspend the debate on its language bill and pass a law that is in line with European norms and does not curtail the acquired rights of the country’s minorities, Zsolt Németh, the head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee, said in Strasbourg on Tuesday.
Addressing a roundtable discussion on language rights in Ukraine, Fidesz MP Németh said Ukraine’s language bill gave cause for concern, arguing that it would restrict the use of minority languages to private life.
Hungary is baffled by the bill, he said, adding that it had added to the bilateral tensions caused by the enactment of the country’s education law. Németh said the only way to resolve the dispute was for Ukraine to submit the bill to the Venice Commission and wait for the body to publish an opinion on the bill before approving it.
“Isolation cannot be in Ukraine’s interest,” Németh said. “If there’s a path to peace and if there’s a perspective of Western integration, they can only lead through respect for human, and specifically, minority rights,” he added.
He said that based on the outcome of the first round of Ukraine’s presidential election, there was reason to hope that the country could start down on a new path concerning its international ties, settle its geopolitical conflicts and base its domestic political activities on respecting minority rights.
Németh also said that
Hungary’s position on Ukraine’s treatment of its minorities enjoyed strong backing in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).
He pointed out that over 80 percent of the body had backed a resolution condemning Ukraine’s education law and calling on Kiev to turn to the Venice Commission in the matter. Romania has proposed another resolution in the matter that would lay out the norms Kiev would have to respect as regards the treatment of its minorities, Németh added. However, he expressed hope that such a resolution would not be necessary after the presidential election.
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WSJ: Hungary bucks U.S. push to curb Russian and Chinese influence – UPDATE
The Hungarian leader made his remarks last month in a meeting with the U.S. ambassador in Budapest.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has told U.S. diplomats that he wants his country to be “neutral, like Austria” as Washington pushes for a tougher line on Russia and China, deepening fears that a longtime American ally is drifting from its orbit, UNIAN report based on WSJ article.
Read also Hungary should realize scale of Russia’s hybrid methods – Klimkin Aides to Mr. Orbán said he wants to remain a troop-contributing member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and values the security Hungary gets from the alliance. But a senior Hungarian official said Mr. Orbán strongly objects to U.S. pressure aimed at curbing the influence of Moscow and Beijing in Europe, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The Hungarian leader made his remarks last month in a meeting with the U.S. ambassador in Budapest, according to people familiar with the discussion. Mr. Orbán’s spokesman didn’t respond to requests for comment.
In recent weeks, the U.S. has sought to rally fellow NATO members to take firmer steps to counter potential Chinese cyber-espionage and for months has been pushing the alliance to step up its backing for Ukraine in the country’s running confrontation with Russia.
“Mr. Orbán has resisted both moves. Like some other European leaders, he has invited Chinese investment in his country’s internet infrastructure. And he is blocking NATO from holding minister-level talks with Ukraine because, his government says, he wants Ukrainian schools to offer more classes in Hungarian for the country’s Hungarian-speaking minority,” the publication wrote. (Read more here about UKRAINE EDUCATION LAW)
“The point for Orbán is, yes, we want to do business with Russia,” the senior Hungarian official said.
Reaction
Hungary is an ally of the United States
On Tuesday Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told MTI that in Hungary there have been false international and Hungarian media reports regarding Hungary. The purpose of these, he said, has been to create confusion before the upcoming visit to Budapest by the US Secretary of State.
Mr. Orbán said that
“Hungary is a member of NATO and an ally of the United States of America. The Hungarian people decided this in a referendum.”
The Prime Minister went on to tell the press agency that “The goal of the Government of Hungary continues to be the strengthening of its existing alliance with the United States. It is in this spirit that we are preparing for the visit to Budapest by Secretary of State Michael Richard Pompeo.”
Christian Democrats call on PACE to protect rights of Transcarpathia Hungarians
Hungarian lawmaker Lőrinc Nacsa on Tuesday called on the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to monitor carefully the situation of Transcarpathia Hungarians after Ukraine’s 2017 public education law curbed their access to Hungarian language post-primary-level education.
Nacsa, of the Christian Democrat (KDNP) party, said that
the Hungarian ethnic minority should not be used for campaign purposes in the upcoming Ukrainian election.
Secretary-General Thorbjorn Jagland responded that the protection of minority rights and minority languages is an important duty of the Council as well as the individual member states. He expressed hope that after further talks, Ukraine will fulfil its obligations and heed the recommendations of the CoE’s Venice Commission.
Zsolt Németh of Fidesz, the head of the Hungarian delegation, welcomed as a “significant development” that “Jagland pledged that the body would follow the state of minority rights in Ukraine carefully”.
GERMAN JOURNALIST ALLEGEDLY FIREBOMBED HUNGARIAN CENTRE IN UKRAINE
Last year, a Polish man was accused of being involved in the firebombing of a Hungarian Cultural Centre located in Western-Ukraine. He said that he had been given instructions by a far-right German journalist who has worked as a consultant for the German Government and for the Alternative for Germany political party. Read more HERE.
German journalist allegedly firebombed Hungarian Centre in Ukraine
Last year, a Polish man was accused of being involved in the firebombing of a Hungarian Cultural Centre located in Western-Ukraine. He said that he had been given instructions by a far-right German journalist who has worked as a consultant for the German Government and for the Alternative for Germany political party.
Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty reported that the Hungarian Cultural Centre in the city of Uzhhorod (capital of the Zakarpattya region in Western-Europe) is the building of the Hungarian Cultural Association.
The Polish man accused German politician Manuel Ochsenreiter of providing instructions for the attack of the building on the 4th of February 2018. A representative for Ochsenreiter denied the accusations. Fortunately, nobody was injured in the attack, but it definitely deepened the conflict between the Hungarian and Ukranian capital over the education law Hungary set for Ukraine.
Ochsenreiter, who is also the editor of the right-wing German magazine Zuerst! (First!), has been an enthusiastic commentator in Russian state media and politics and ensured his support for the western region of Ukraine. He has also worked in recent months as a consultant for Markus Frohnmaier, a member of Germany’s parliament who spoke for Ochsenreiter and denied the charges.
“My co-worker denies the allegations as fictitious. I also cannot imagine there is [any truth] to it, but do consider it plausible that the accused has wrongly accused [Ochsenreiter] to improve his own situation” – said Frohnmaier.
According to the Polish authorities who started the investigation, there was no immediate indication that the German politician and journalist had been charged with any crime. Ochsenreiter himself was also unaware of any allegations from Polish authorities.
Following the February 4 attack and a second firebombing of the Hungarian Cultural Center with Molotov cocktails, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Pavlo Klimkin, suggested that Russia was behind both incidents. The attacks created tension between Ukraine and Hungary, which caused Kyiv to be accused of failing to protect ethnic Hungarians.
Featured image: www.facebook.com/mleeta
Hungary not to grab Ukraine’s Zakarpattia, says Ukrainian expert
Hungary is not Russia, Chornovil said.
Hungary will not be seizing Zakarpattia from Ukraine, Taras Chornovil, a Ukrainian political analyst and foreign relations expert says to UNIAN news agency.
“Hungary, unlike Russia, is part of the civilized world. Its policies could be uncivilized, and pro-Russian in some ways, but there are fundamental principles in the EU and NATO. They could destabilize the situation -not in the whole of Zakarpattia/Transcarpathia (Kárpátalja) region, but in two of its districts – but they can never claim a revision of borders, this will never happen, under any circumstances,” he said during an online Q&A session with the Ukrainian news outlet Glavred’s readers.
In addition, the policy of issuing Hungarian passports plays against the Hungarians themselves, the analyst believes. He explained that many new EU citizens from Hungarian villages and towns leave Zakarpattia, but choose to live and work in other EU countries rather than stay in Budapest. There is an ongoing, gradual extinction of these territories, according to the expert.
“I suppose the next census might bring plenty of unexpected news. There is no one to play along any separatist ideas. And don’t forget: Hungary is not Russia,” Chornovil said.
As UNIAN reported earlier, relations between Ukraine and Hungary deteriorated after the Verkhovna Rada adopted a new law on education in 2017. Hungary has been blocking Ukraine-NATO Commission meetings, alleging that the language provision of the law on education, which stipulates that the national language is the language of the educational process in educational institutions violate the rights of Hungarians living in Ukraine.
The Hungarian Foreign Minister demanded that Ukraine amend the law on education and postpone its implementation until 2023, otherwise Budapest will block important meetings for Ukraine at the level of the European Union and NATO.
In addition, after the situation with the secret distribution of Hungarian passports to Ukrainians in Zakarpattia region, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said that Ukraine could expel the Hungarian Consul in Berehove and would continue implementing the pro-Ukrainian policy in the region. In turn, Szijjártó threatened to resort to new measures to hinder the European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine.
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UNIAN says, on October 4, the Hungarian Consul in the town of Berehove was declared persona non grata. He had to leave the territory of Ukraine within the following 72 hours. In a retaliation move, Hungary announced the expulsion of the Ukrainian Consul in Budapest. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on November 15 echoed Vladimir Putin in claiming that it was impossible to reach an agreement with today’s leadership of Ukraine. He expressed hope that following presidential elections scheduled for 2019, it will be easier for Budapest to come to terms with Ukraine leaders.
MEPs protest Ukrainian language law
A group of 19 central European MEPs have sent an open letter to Andriy Parubiy, the chairman of Ukraine’s parliament, expressing concern over the country’s language bill on Friday.
The letter was signed by MEPs of Hungary’s ruling Fidesz-KDNP, ethnic Hungarian MEPs in neighbouring countries, as well as two Romanian and two Bulgarian MEPs.
Ukrainian parliament approved the first draft on Oct. 4 which makes compulsory the use of Ukrainian as an official language in education and other areas.
The second round of voting is scheduled for Nov. 6.
In the letter the European lawmakers cited obligations Ukraine has undertaken in international accords on observing minority rights.
Further they propose submitting the bill to the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission for an opinion and approval before a final vote.
In the meantime, Andrea Bocskor, a Hungarian MEP from Ukraine’s Transcarpathia region, has sent a letter to inform Antonio Tajani, the president of the European Parliament, about the bill which she said violates minority rights.
She asked Brussels to monitor the legislative process and take steps to make Ukraine observe basic human rights and consult ethnic minority organisations and international institutions on new laws affecting minorities.
Foreign minister: Hungary proposes to Ukraine pact on minority protection
Hungary proposes to Ukraine signing an accord on the protection of national minorities, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Wednesday.
“Confidence between the two countries needs to be rebuilt,” the minister told MTI in Warsaw, where he held talks with his Ukrainian partner Pavlo Klimkin on the sidelines of a security forum.
According to the proposal, both governments would refrain from pursuing any policy that could lead to the assimilation of a national community or change the ethnic composition in any single region.
Further, it would secure national minorities their language rights in the areas of education, religion, culture and administration.
Szijjártó said Ukraine promised to study the proposal. Hopefully, at the next meeting in Milan on December 7, a bilateral discussion of the proposal will ensue based on merit, he added.
It is clear that “rebuilding confidence requires several small steps to be taken,” he said. It has been a positive development that a signature drive initiating the deportation of ethnic Hungarians from Transcarpathia has been removed from the Ukrainian parliament’s website, he added.
“We consider it a very positive sign that Ukraine has taken it seriously that this issue is completely unsuitable to Europe in the 21st century,” he said.
He added that Klimkin has recently expressed agreement with the view that “it would not be an exaggeration” to describe the petition as “disgusting.”
He said it was also a positive development that the Ukrainian authorities had launched an investigation regarding the appearance of “billboards with misleading information about ethnic Hungarian leaders.”
Under a new agreement, the Ukrainian government will appoint an official in charge of cross-border cooperation, Szijjártó said.
Hungarian deputy foreign minister Levente Magyar and the newly appointed Ukrainian official will meet as soon as possible in order to pave the way for the smooth continuation of an economic programme for Transcarpathia, he added.
In order to restore trust, Szijjártó told Klimkin that Budapest was ready to activate a 50 million dollar credit line to finance road building in Transcarpathia. Hungary is also ready to continue a scheme offering camps for children from families who had been affected by the fights in eastern Ukraine.
Szijjártó said he had informed Klimkin that Hungary would continue to offer one hundred scholarships annually to Ukrainian students in Hungarian universities.
“It is in Hungary’s interest that the conflict which has developed should be resolved as soon as possible,” Szijjártó said.
Featured image: MTI