War in Ukraine: Tragic death of Hungarian from Transcarpathia, Trump seeks trilateral meeting
The latest Hungarian casualty from Transcarpathia in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was conscripted two years ago. He had lived with his family in Kincseshomok and is survived by his widow and young son, while the exact circumstances and timing of his death remain unknown.
Another Hungarian from Transcarpathia killed in the Russian Invasion
Hungarian-language news outlet Kárpáti Igaz Szó reported on the latest death. While details of the incident—including its location and cause—were not disclosed, Ukrainian authorities informed the family of the loss on Monday morning. Zsolt Leco, born in 1982 in Kisgejőc in Transcarpathia, had been living with his family in Kincseshomok before being drafted. He will be laid to rest on 19 August in his hometown in Transcarpathia.
He leaves behind a widow and one child. According to the Transcarpathian Hungarian outlet, more than sixty individuals of Hungarian origin or descent have died since the Russian invasion began in February 2022. These casualties include conscripts, volunteers and contract soldiers.
A 2023 article by 444 reported that 374 ethnic Hungarians from Transcarpathia were serving on the Ukrainian front at the time. Among them was Fedir Shandor, who has since become Ukraine’s ambassador to Budapest. Another, university professor Viktor Traski from Transcarpathia, came to wider attention in Hungary when he sent a New Year’s message from the front in 2023 —in Hungarian.
Ukrainian Ombudsman: No foul play in Sebestyén József’s death
The death of another conscripted Hungarian soldier, József Sebestyén, had previously sparked controversy. Hungarian government officials and their allies claimed he had been brutally killed for leaving his unit after being mobilised. However, the Ukrainian ombudsman’s office recently released information provided by the military. According to a letter cited by Blikk, no signs of violence or combat injuries were found, and the cause of death was identified as illness.
The office, however, did not specify the exact time of death, did not consult family members, nor did it investigate the period between his mobilisation and hospitalisation.
Sebestyén had left his military unit without authorisation on 18 June, failing to inform anyone of his reasons. On 24 June, he admitted himself to hospital in Beregszász, where he was treated as an inpatient. Despite receiving medical care, he was pronounced dead by 6 July, when an autopsy was carried out. The exact date of his death remains unclear.
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Trump seeks trilateral meeting with Putin, Zelenskyy on Aug 22
According to Anadolu, US President Donald Trump is seeking to hold a trilateral meeting with his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts as early as 22 August, Axios reported on Saturday.
Following his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, Trump told European leaders in a phone call that he intends to arrange a meeting with both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Trump is scheduled to meet Zelenskyy at the White House on Monday and has invited European leaders to attend.
Putin has not yet publicly confirmed his participation in the proposed summit.
The Anchorage meeting on Friday marked the first face-to-face encounter between Trump and Putin since the outbreak of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It was also the first time since 2007 that Putin had set foot on US soil for talks with an American president.
During the subsequent press conference, Putin declared that he and Trump had reached an “understanding”. Trump, for his part, said they had made “some headway” but admitted they had not secured an agreement to end the conflict.
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