Orbán-Zelensky Talks Yield Agreement for First Ukrainian School in Hungary, But Lack Clarity on Future Cooperation

During a meeting with Ukraine’s President Zelensky, Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán expressed a desire to strengthen relations and sign a cooperation agreement with Ukraine. However, the details of this agreement remain unclear. Earlier this year, EU leaders had to override Orbán’s veto to approve €50 billion in new aid to Ukraine, and Orbán reassured them in June that Hungary would not impede NATO’s assistance program as long as Hungary did not have to participate in it.

Despite his stance on how to achieve peace in the Ukraine war differing from that of other NATO states, Orbán acknowledged that Hungary cannot change the significant number of differing opinions. As part of the EU Council Presidency, Orbán visited Kyiv to emphasize the importance of peace for Ukraine’s security and European security as a whole. Although Budapest is skeptical about the EU accession negotiations with Ukraine, Orbán expressed support for modernizing the country and praised progress in addressing issues of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine. Despite these positive outcomes, Orbán’s visit to Kyiv is unlikely to change Hungary’s position on certain key issues.

The meeting between Orbán and Zelensky also resulted in an agreement to open the first school for Ukrainian-speaking children in Hungary. Both leaders seem content with the results of the meeting, despite the fact that it did not bring about significant changes on a larger scale.