Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar Wants Ukraine To Fulfill Victor Orban’s 11 Conditions On Zakarpattia.

Budapest; May 2026: Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar during a recent joint press conference on the 20th of this month (May 2026) in Brussels with European Commission’s President Ursula von der Leyen, have said: “Hungary is demanding that Ukraine restore guarantees for the Hungarian national minority regarding the use of their native language as a condition for starting a new phase in bilateral relations”.

According to the Hungarian prime minister, official Budapest has already submitted a proposal to the Ukrainian side consisting of 11 specific points. These relate directly to language and cultural issues and are not entirely new for Kyiv.

“For us, it is important to have guarantees for the 100,000 Hungarians living in Ukraine — that they will be able to use their native language in schools, cultural activities, and public administration,” said Péter Magyar.

He added that in Europe and worldwide, the right to use one’s language where it is dominant is a fundamental human right, regardless of whether it concerns a primary school student or a city mayor.

Prospects for negotiations

Magyar noted that the sides have already held several rounds of technical talks, and Budapest maintains active contact with the Ukrainian side.

The Hungarian government expects Ukraine to agree to the conditions and introduce the necessary changes to its legislation.

The next step after the technical meetings should be a bilateral meeting of foreign ministers.

“I would be very glad, after these technical meetings, to meet with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Hungarian-speaking areas of Ukraine and open a truly new chapter in our relations,” the Hungarian prime minister said.

Earlier, on April 13th last month – Magyar who was then aspiring for the Prime Ministerial berth of Hungary had made a statement about the war in Ukraine, acknowledging that the country is a victim of an unprovoked attack and has the full right to defend its territorial integrity. “We believe we received the right European news from this country, which opens up new opportunities for us and gives us a chance to begin a new, good-neighbourly chapter in our mutual history. The people deserve such open relations”, Magyar had then noted.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, had then said: “Ukraine has already signaled its willingness to engage in relevant contacts at the level of the Ukrainian president and Tisza leader Péter Magyar. We expect this contact and are of course interested. We are waiting for a response”.

Furthermore, Sybiha had then reiterated that Ukraine and Hungary must resolve a wide range of issues, from border infrastructure to cooperation on the European track. “Speaking broadly – this means lifting Hungary’s block as a country on the path to our EU membership. This also covers the 20th sanctions package, the EUR 90 billion loan and the formal opening of clusters”, the Foreign Minister explains. He also noted that Ukraine is ready to implement the highest standards of the European Council and the EU regarding national minorities.

Now, on the 20th of this month at the Brussels press conference Prime Minister Peter Magyar said: “official Budapest has already submitted a proposal to the Ukrainian side consisting of 11 specific points. These relate directly to language and cultural issues and are not entirely new for Kyiv. For us, it is important to have guarantees for the 100,000 Hungarians living in Ukraine — that they will be able to use their native language in schools, cultural activities, and public administration”, said Péter Magyar. He added that in Europe and worldwide, the right to use one’s language where it is dominant is a fundamental human right, regardless of whether it concerns a primary school student or a city mayor.

Magyar noted that the sides have already held several rounds of technical talks, and Budapest maintains active contact with the Ukrainian side. The Hungarian government expects Ukraine to agree to the conditions and introduce the necessary changes to its legislation.

The next step after the technical meetings should be a bilateral meeting of foreign ministers. “I would be very glad, after these technical meetings, to meet with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Hungarian-speaking areas of Ukraine and open a truly new chapter in our relations”, the Hungarian prime minister said.

Earlier, on May 20th, Magyar made a statement about the war in Ukraine, acknowledging that the country is a victim of an unprovoked attack and has the full right to defend its territorial integrity. He emphasised that the first step toward ending the conflict should be a long-term ceasefire followed by a stable peace with international security guarantees.

Meanwhile, Kyiv and Budapest are actively working to improve bilateral relations and plan to open a “new page” in their shared history.

In particular, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha reported that the Ukrainian side has already signaled readiness to hold official high-level contacts with Hungary.

For his part, Magyar expressed hope for a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and suggested a possible venue.

The Hungarian government chief proposed organising talks in Berehove, in Zakarpattia region, to personally discuss with the Ukrainian leader the issue of ensuring language and other rights of the Hungarian minority in the region.

Team Maverick.