Magyar to hold first official, one-on-one meeting with Zelensky in Brussels

Ahead of the European Council’s two-day meeting, which begins on Thursday, Péter Magyar held a brief press conference in Brussels. The Hungarian Prime Minister emphasised that the government is conducting negotiations with the European Commission and EU member states aimed at bringing to a close the proceedings initiated against Hungary under the Fidesz government and involving a daily fine of one million euros as soon as possible. “Hungary has lost roughly one billion euros so far because of the Orbán government, which was unable to establish regulations compliant with EU law while at the same time protecting Europe’s external borders and the Hungarian border,” he said, according to an MTI report.

He also said that Monday’s adoption of the Ukrainian law on education in minority languages represents a historic breakthrough and provides an opportunity for putting Ukrainian-Hungarian relations on a new footing.

He announced that while in Brussels, he is going to have a brief, one-on-one meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, with another meeting between them potentially taking place in Berehove, Ukraine later this fall.

He noted that a ten-point political agreement had already been reached at the expert and lower political levels, which he would like to have confirmed at the highest political level as well. He emphasized that this agreement is not only beneficial to Hungarians but also to other national minorities living in Ukraine, including Romanians and Poles, as it contributes to the restoration of their rights as well.

With regard to the EU’s next seven-year budget, covering the period after 2027, Péter Magyar called it good news that, in the proposal prepared by the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, the amount allocated to Hungary has not been reduced, and the member states’ contribution obligations have not increased. At the same time, although the total EU budget may be reduced, this will not be in areas of particular importance to Hungary.

Concerning EU enlargement he noted with regard to the Western Balkan countries that negotiations with Montenegro are expected to conclude, but there is also light at the end of the tunnel for other candidate countries, including North Macedonia, Albania, and Serbia. This does not mean, for example, that Serbia is very close to accession, but progress can be expected, which is a priority for Hungary due to the Hungarian minority living in Serbia.

Péter Magyar welcomed the EU Council's resolution concluding the conditionality procedure launched against Hungary in 2022. As he put it, the document “is worth 4.2 billion euros to the Hungarian people and Hungarian companies.” He stated that another portion of the funds that had been frozen due to rule-of-law concerns and corruption under the Orbán government could now be returned to Hungary and the Hungarian people.

The Prime Minister said that during negotiations on the seven-year EU budget, every effort should be made to secure additional funding for Hungary-equivalent to or close to the amount previously lost-, and there is indeed a possibility of achieving this. This could be achieved either by financing various projects or by increasing the EU funds allocated to Hungary.