"WE DO NOT SEE THE NEED FOR ACCELERATED ACCESSION OF UKRAINE TO THE EU" Hungarian: "They still have a long way to go"

French President Emmanuel Macron (R) welcomes Hungarian PM Peter Magyar (L) at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, 03 June 2026. EPA/CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON

Ukraine’s EU accession negotiations can officially begin with the opening of the first clusters (six chapters) in mid-June, after the new Hungarian government announced it has reached a comprehensive agreement with Kyiv on education, language and cultural rights for the Hungarian minority in Ukraine.

Minority rights of ethnic Hungarians, most of whom live in Ukraine’s western Zakarpattia region, had long been a point of contention between the two countries, and were successfully used by the previous Hungarian government of Viktor Orban to block Ukraine’s accession process to the EU.

“This is an absolute breakthrough,” commented Andras Racz, a senior fellow of Berlin-based research institute DGAP, to BIRN. “Both sides have made significant and strategic concessions. It shows that that if there is political will, change is possible.”

According to the Hungarian government, the “historic agreement” is the result of intensive negotiations conducted over the past three weeks. This marks a sharp contrast with the Orban government’s hostile attitude towards Kyiv since 2017, but especially since 2022, which culminated in the framing of the neighbouring country as a “threat to Hungary” in the April election campaign.

For its part, Kyiv was quick to use the change of government in Hungary after Magyar’s Tisza party won the April election to turn the page in relations with Budapest. The announcement followed meetings between Prime Minister Magyar and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as well as French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris. A high-level meeting between Magyar and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to take place early next week.

Under the agreement, the Ukrainian government has committed to restoring educational rights for the Hungarian minority, including the reopening of minority schools where Hungarian would be used as a language of instruction, as well as in internal communications and in administration. In settlements where Hungarians constitute over 10 per cent of the population, Hungarian national symbols may also be used and politics can be conducted in Hungarian.

Experts underline that these concessions were not particularly difficult for Kyiv to make, since the size of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine has dramatically shrunk since Russia’s invasion and is now well under the 100,000 often cited by the Hungarian side. Some analysts say that there are currently more Ukrainians living in Hungary than ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine.

Ukraine will now need to amend its Minority Action Plan and adopt the necessary legislative changes to implement these commitments. In return, Hungary will no longer oppose the opening of the first chapters in Ukraine’s EU accession process, which could officially begin in mid-June under the Cypriot EU presidency, the Hungarian prime minister said in a Facebook post.

The agreement forms part of a broader pro-European shift in Hungarian foreign policy under the new government. The Magyar government recently lifted Orban’s veto on military reimbursements under the European Peace Facility for countries supplying Ukraine with weapons; in one of its last acts, the Orban government already lifted the blockade on the 90-billion-loan to Ukraine after oil flows via the Druzhba pipeline were restored at the end of April.

“The Hungarian-Ukrainian agreement is also a major breakthrough in the EU’s common foreign policy,” Racz said. “It shows that the European Union has significant leverage; Ukraine has accepted these demands as part of its accession process.”

At the same time, Magyar made clear that Hungary supports a merit-based accession process and does not favour any accelerated path to EU membership. “A fast-tracked accession procedure cannot be applied to Ukraine. In accordance with the principle of equal treatment, the Western Balkan countries should progress on the basis of the same principles as Ukraine,” Magyar emphasised .

Ukraine expert Racz agrees. “There is no EU country which has Ukraine’s accelerated accession officially on its agenda,” he pointed out. “Currently, neither the EU nor Ukraine is ready for a fast-track accession.”

However, once Ukraine is fully prepared for accession – which Magyar suggested could still be 10 to 15 years away – Hungary will hold a referendum on Ukrainian membership, in line with a pledge made by his Tisza party in its election program. But this may not ultimately be Magyar’s responsibility, as it could happen under a different Hungarian government.