On Tuesday, July 2, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is expected to make surprise visit to Kyiv and meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
This was reported by The Guardian.
The publication reports the news, citing three sources with knowledge of the plans. Viktor Orban is expected to visit Kyiv on Tuesday, July 2.
Two sources in Budapest indicated that Orban is likely to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, "in the Hungarian prime minister’s first trip to neighbouring Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion more than two years ago."
According to The Guardian, Mykhailo Podolyak, an Adviser to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, refused to comment on the possible visit of the Hungarian Prime Minister, but another source in Kyiv confirmed his plans, saying: "Orbán is here tomorrow, unless there is a last-minute change."
According to The Guardian, citing another source in Budapest, the plans for the visit were agreed upon "after lengthy negotiations on the issue of rights for Ukraine’s Hungarian-speaking minority, who live in the far west of Ukraine close to the two countries’ border." A source in Budapest with knowledge of the buildup to the visit said:
"It was a precondition for the meeting that the issue of nationality rights was resolved. In recent weeks, an agreement has been reached. They will be able to announce this as a success."
However, sceptics of Orban, according to the newspaper, accuse him of using the issue of citizenship rights as a "smokescreen" to promote Russian theses on the war in Ukraine: "While the issue of nationality rights has been one of Budapest’s most vocal complaints when it comes to Ukraine, sceptics of Orbán have accused him of using the issue as a smokescreen to facilitate the promotion of Russian talking points over the conflict."
Earlier, we also wrote that Hungary will not block the negotiation process on Ukraine's accession to the EU.