Hungary opposes possible talks on Ukraine’s EU accession — PM Orban
"There were seven preconditions on the agenda and Ukraine failed to implement three of them," Viktor Orban noted
BRUSSELS, December 14. /TASS/. Hungary stands against supporting talks on the Ukrainian accession to the European Union, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Thursday.
"No sense of launching talks today with Ukraine [on EU’s admission]," Prime Minister Orban told journalists ahead of the European Union’s Summit in Brussels on December 14-15.
The Hungarian premier said he believed that the European Union "needs to start discussing this issue only after all of the requirements are met."
"There were seven preconditions on the agenda and Ukraine failed to implement three of them," Orban added.
The head of Hungary’s government added that the issue of Ukraine’s joining the European Union poses "a very complicated legal procedure" and each candidate involved in it must be responsible for the currently-pressed requirements.
Hungary’s Premier Orban stated previously in the month that he objected to including the issue of Ukraine's EU membership on the agenda of the organization’s meeting in Brussels on December 14-15.
Hungary has repeatedly stated its intention to keep channels of communication with Russia open in order to continue looking for ways to resolve the Ukraine crisis, among other things.
Putin and Orban focused on this issue at their meeting in Beijing on the sidelines of the Belt and Road international forum on October 17.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto stated on Monday that it would be irresponsible to launch talks on Ukraine’s accession to the European Union.
According to the top Hungarian diplomat, the European Commission’s statement that Ukraine meets four out of seven requirements for EU membership "simply is not true." Before beginning the talks, in his words, it is necessary to thoroughly analyze the potential consequences of Ukraine’s membership.
He recalled that Hungary has suggested the EU first establish strategic partnership with Ukraine and then, based on how this goes, decide on the beginning of admission talks. He said that it looks expedient to discuss formats of cooperation with Ukraine and organize discussions on this matter to receive answers to fundamental questions. "So far, we don’t know the answers to them," Szijjarto told journalists on Monday on the sidelines of an EU ministerial meeting on assistance to Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East.