“Sibiha arrived in Budapest on Monday for talks on, among other things, the protection of the rights of national minorities, as well as the promotion of Ukraine’s accession to the EU and NATO”, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
The minister noted that during the negotiations with Siyarto, they “coordinated the next steps in the development of border infrastructure, which will contribute to the improvement of trade and economic relations between the countries.”
“In this context, it is important to hold another meeting of the joint intergovernmental commission. We agreed on this with my colleague,” said the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He also emphasized that one of the “key priorities” for Ukraine is integration into the EU, so Kyiv is counting on “the further support of Hungary” on this path both during the current presidency in the EU and in the future – in particular, “on support for the opening of negotiation clusters in parallel”.
Also, according to Sibiga, during the meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Peter Szijarto, the parties noted “positive dynamics” in solving the issue of protecting the rights of the Hungarian national community and agreed on “further cooperation to reach a consensus on all sensitive topics.”
“Hungarians of Ukraine are an integral and equal part of the Ukrainian political nation and act as a key bridge of understanding between our states,” the minister emphasized.
In his turn, Szijjarto emphasized that “Hungary continues to take a peaceful position in the war in Ukraine and supports all international initiatives that create the possibility of achieving peace as soon as possible,” the Hungarian service of Radio Liberty reports.
“Hungary will continue the largest humanitarian action in its history as long as necessary to help people and families in difficult situations,” he said.
According to him, the government has spent HUF 66 billion on subsidies to Ukraine, there are hundreds of schools and kindergartens in Hungary where children from refugee families study, and a bilingual school for Ukrainian-speaking children has been opened in Budapest, which Sibiga visited.
“Hungary is ready to participate in the reconstruction of Ukraine. For us, it’s not just a communication panel, it’s also happening. Already during the war, we took part in the reconstruction efforts and we are taking part in the work necessary to restore the functioning of educational institutions, health care and public administration,” said Siyarto.
According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Hungarian-Ukrainian cooperation and relations “must be based on mutual goodwill, mutual respect and mutual goodwill.” “We sincerely expect Ukraine to restore the rights of the Hungarian national community regarding access to their native language in the fields of education, culture and public administration.”
Sibiha arrived in Budapest on Monday for talks on, among other things, the protection of the rights of national minorities, as well as the promotion of Ukraine’s accession to the EU and NATO.