Ukraine authorities in dialogue with Hungary to settle national minorities issue

There are ongoing discussions between the Ukrainian government and Hungary regarding the matter of national minorities, with the hope of reaching a resolution, reported Ukrinform.net. Ukraine Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Olha Stefanishyna, made the statement during a national telethon.

"We have also... started a dialogue with the Hungarian side and see the prospect of settling issues that concern the Hungarian national minority, issues that arise regarding the educational process. With our new minister, we managed to resume dialogue with the Hungarian side," said Stefanishyna.

Stefanishyna highlighted that the European Commission's seven recommendations regarding ethnic minorities work in Ukraine's favor by preventing any manipulation of the issue in NATO. This is because it is the EU that evaluates Ukraine's policies and draws conclusions based on these recommendations.

Ukraine was granted the status of a candidate for EU membership in June 2022. However, the European Commission presented seven recommendations that must be fulfilled before any further progress towards European integration can be made.

Oksen Lisovyi was appointed as the Minister of Education and Science by the Verkhovna Rada on March 21.

Hungary has been preventing meetings of the Ukraine-NATO Commission at the ministerial level since 2017, as it requires Ukraine to change its policy on the rights of Hungarian minorities. The Hungarian government has expressed concerns over Ukraine's education law, which mandates that children belonging to national minorities begin their education in Ukrainian language from secondary school.

EU's recommendation for Ukraine's candidacy

The seven recommendations made by the European Commission for Ukraine to advance its progress towards EU membership are:

1. Ensure the independence, integrity, and efficiency of the judiciary, including the High Anti-Corruption Court;
2. Strengthen the rule of law and fight against corruption, including by improving asset recovery and whistleblower protection;
3. Ensure the accountability of law enforcement agencies and reform the security sector;
4. Improve the business environment, including by enhancing the protection of property rights and reducing the regulatory burden;
5. Enhance the capacity and independence of regulatory authorities, in particular in the energy and telecommunications sectors;
6. Reform public administration, including by ensuring the professionalism, accountability, and efficiency of civil servants;
7. Protect and promote the rights of persons belonging to national minorities, including by fully implementing the law on education in consultation with national minorities and respecting their rights to use their mother tongue and have access to education in their mother tongue.

These recommendations are part of the EU's conditionality process, which requires candidate countries to meet certain political and economic criteria in order to join the European Union.