The Hungarian authorities will hold a referendum on the issue of Ukraine's accession to the European Union. This was announced by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to journalists at the end of the EU summit in Brussels.
„I believe that we must seriously address the issue of Ukraine's membership in the European Union. It is impossible to make a responsible decision on this issue now, and I do not want this decision to be made over people's heads. That is why I have come to the conclusion that we will initiate a vote on the issue of Ukraine's membership in the European Union. We will hold it in the same way as we hold national referendums – "quickly and simply," the prime minister said.
“We need to know to what extent people are willing to sacrifice their interests for the sake of further support for Ukraine“, Orbán stressed.
Previously, he has repeatedly stated that Ukraine's immediate accession to the EU would cause "irreparable damage to agriculture and the entire European economy". In addition, according to Orbán, the Ukrainian authorities have not restored the rights of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia and have not stopped actions that threaten Hungary's energy security.
These demands were also put forward by Budapest during the discussion of issues of Kiev's integration into European structures.
At the same time, Orbán noted that he did not rule out the possibility of Ukraine being accepted into the EU in the future if it fulfills all the necessary requirements and meets the criteria for candidate accession.