Hungary will block the EU’s accession talks with Ukraine if it believes they are going in a direction that harms the country’s national interests, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has said.
In an interview with Mandiner news magazine on Friday, Szijjarto weighed in on the bloc’s recent decision to kick-start official membership negotiations with Ukraine. The move was backed by all 26 EU members except Hungary, which abstained from the vote at the last minute, despite Budapest previously accusing Kiev of rampant corruption and warning that accession could drag the entire bloc into a conflict with Russia.
The development was hailed by the Western media as a breakthrough, with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen describing it as “a strategic decision and a day that will remain engraved in the history of our union.”
The Hungarian foreign minister, however, disagreed, saying that the move “has no practical significance.”
Szijjarto made it clear that Hungary “does not take responsibility” for starting the talks and “exempts” itself from all the consequences stemming from them. He also signaled that Budapest could stonewall the accession talks in the future.
If, during the preparation for the real negotiations, Brussels wants to impose things… that would be disadvantageous for us – well, then you will have to use the hard veto.
He also denied claims that Hungary agreed to not veto the start of the talks because the EU decided to unfreeze €10 billion ($10.9 billion) in cohesion funds for the country, citing Budapest’s progress on judicial reforms.
“We did not go with a tactical position that if we receive this, we will change here because the reasons why we still do not support the start of accession negotiations with Ukraine still also exist,” Szijjarto explained.
His comments echoed earlier remarks by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who called the EU’s decision “completely senseless, irrational, and incorrect” under the current circumstances. He has also described Ukraine as “one of the most corrupt countries in the world,” questioning the EU’s assessment that Kiev has made significant progress on its way to joining the bloc.