Mayor of Berehove: Zelensky thanked the Transcarpathian soldiers for their heroic efforts in defending Ukraine

"I sensed a change of tone, it seemed that the President had discovered an excellent partner during his visit to Transcarpathia", Zoltán Babják, the ethnic Hungarian mayor of Berehove told Népszava about Volodymyr Zelensky's recent visit in the town.

According to his account, the meeting was held in a good atmosphere despite the fact that the education law, which severely restricts the rights of the Hungarian minority and curbs their use of their mother tongue, was also discussed.

The Ukrainian president made an unexpected visit to Berehove on Wednesday, meeting with representatives of churches and NGOs, as well as mayors from the region. Our colleagues were there to capture the ovation that greeted the President when he arrived.

Babják also said that Zelensky thanked the Transcarpathian soldiers for their heroic efforts in fighting the Russian invading forces and also thanked residents of the region for helping Ukrainians who had fled there from other parts of the country.

The mayor said that during his meeting with the president, he pointed out that on its road towards the European Union, Ukraine needed to uphold the rights of minorities. Zelensky responded by promising to process the information.

László Zubánics, professor and head of the Transcarpathian Hungarian Cultural Institute, provided Blikk with further details. According to him, Zelensky has repeatedly said that he would be happy to hold talks with the Hungarian government, even in Transcarpathia, but he doesn't yet see any interest in them to do so. "He said he hoped that this would change in the near future, because there are a number of problems between the two countries that such a bilateral meeting could certainly smooth out," Zubánics quoted the Ukrainian president as saying.

Zelensky also decorated some of the Hungarian soldiers during his visit, and posed for photos with the 128th Munkachevo Territorial Defence Brigade.