EU seeks to stop Hungary from blocking Ukraine’s membership talks

The European Union is discussing ways to prevent Hungary from undermining the opening of accession talks with Ukraine, according to people familiar with the matter.

In a closed-door discussion last week, some member states pushed the European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm, to explore options to open the first chapter of negotiations despite objections raised by Budapest over the treatment of Hungarian minority communities in western Ukraine, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

According to the people, members believe Budapest aims to torpedo the process with Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s plan to hold a “national consultation” on Ukraine’s EU membership – despite Hungary’s prior approval to open the accession talks in 2023.

Hungary only lifted its veto that December once Brussels unlocked €10 billion (S$14.5 billion) in EU funds, blocked due to corruption and rule of law concerns.

“There is only so much member states can take in terms of wilful abuse of the veto,” Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin told Euronews on May 12.

“We have seen it play out in Ukraine. There are a number of instruments that we can use and we shouldn’t be afraid to use them.”

There may be ways to avoid that obstacle. While unanimity is needed to open and conclude EU accession negotiations, it is not legally required for opening or closing individual chapters in that process, said people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to discuss private deliberations.

Ukraine’s accession bid gained fresh momentum after Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country in 2022.

While Brussels denied any fast track to Ukraine, saying the process must be merit-based, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised Kyiv’s progress with reforms despite the ongoing war.

The EU’s move comes as US President Donald Trump accelerates his efforts to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine. In contrast to its

opposition to Ukraine’s bid for Nato membership

– which Moscow has long sought to prevent – Washington has endorsed Ukraine’s EU membership aspirations.

Amid geopolitical turmoil, the bloc has kick-started its enlargement process in the hope that more members can bring stability to the continent.

The people said that the commission told member states in a recent closed-door discussion that it intends to send the European Council a first report on opening talks on the first chapter of accession negotiations with Ukraine and neighbouring Moldova. 

If Hungary lifts its veto, the bloc’s executive arm said member states could still decide on starting discussions on the clusters in Ukraine’s accession process in June, the people said.

Minority Concerns

The Hungarian premier has maintained close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, arguing that Russia does not pose a military threat to the EU and echoing Moscow’s talking points on Ukraine. 

Budapest’s latest spat with Kyiv concerns the rights of the ethnic Hungarian minority in Ukraine’s western province of Zakarpattia. While Kyiv had passed some national laws on minority rights to address Hungary’s concerns, Budapest said that Ukraine still has not met its commitments.

However, a European Commission spokeperson said Kyiv had addressed all the steps the commission had identified in a 2022 review of minority rights in Ukraine, welcoming Kyiv’s action plan on minorities which it is required to pass as part of accession negotiations.

Meanwhile, bilateral negotiations between Budapest and Kyiv on Hungarian minority rights were interrupted after Ukraine said it had uncovered a Hungarian espionage network operating in Zakarpattia, an allegation which Hungary rejected.

In the recent discussion, some EU envoys expressed concern about Mr Orban’s negative comments about Ukraine’s EU membership, according to the people.

Mr Orban has made opposition to Ukraine’s bid to join the bloc a central theme of his campaign for the election in 2026. 

He argues that Ukraine’s EU membership would “ruin” Hungary’s economy. However, the Hungarian public is still divided on Ukraine’s EU accession.

EU officials are concerned about the premier’s planned “national consultation” on Ukrainian membership of the bloc, the people said.

Past “consultations”, usually accompanied by pro-government campaigns, have inevitably produced results in line with Mr Orban’s policies. BLOOMBERG