On June 3, Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar announced a "comprehensive agreement" with Ukraine — directly during an official visit to Paris, in a Facebook post. According to him, after several weeks of intensive negotiations, Budapest and Kyiv reached an agreement on language, educational, cultural and political rights of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia. In return, Hungary will agree to open the first EU negotiating cluster on Ukraine's membership.
"We have reached a comprehensive agreement with Ukraine on expanding the rights of the 100,000-strong Hungarian minority. In three weeks, we managed to achieve what Orban could not do in 10 years."
Peter Magyar, Prime Minister of Hungary, Facebook
What the agreement specifically provides
According to Magyar, Ukraine's commitments cover several blocks. In education — restoration of the minority school system: the Hungarian language will be used not only in lessons but also in school documentation; final and entrance exams can be taken in Hungarian. In public space — in settlements where the Hungarian community exceeds 10% of the population, free use of Hungarian symbols, flags and bilingual signs is permitted. Separately, the right to celebrate Hungarian national holidays and perform the anthem at ceremonies is recorded.
Magyar emphasized that Kyiv must enshrine its commitments in legislation and include them in the action plan for EU accession — that is, they will become part of Ukraine's official negotiating file in Brussels.
What is not in the agreement
Here is a critical detail. As Euronews reports, Kyiv did not immediately confirm the content of the agreement. The commitments themselves are not publicly detailed in a joint document — only what Magyar outlined in his post is known. No signed bilateral protocol or roadmap with implementation deadlines was officially announced.
Brussels's reaction was faster than Kyiv's. As Kyiv Independent reports, on the same day, June 3, the Hungarian ambassador at an EU ambassadors' meeting unexpectedly lifted the objection, allowing the agenda to change at the last minute. Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos wrote on X that the agreement "opens the way for advancing Ukraine's European integration course."
Context: what this means for accession
Hungary under Orban blocked any progress on Ukraine's EU membership for more than a year, presenting a list of 11 demands. Magyar defeated Orban in elections in April and promised to restore relations with Kyiv — and indeed acts fundamentally differently. However, Budapest's principled position has not changed: Hungary does not support accelerated Ukrainian accession. "If Ukraine manages to close all 33 chapters on accession within 10 or 15 years — we will hold a legally binding referendum," Magyar said.
The first negotiating cluster — "fundamentals" — has not yet been officially opened. According to Kyiv Independent, the specific date for its opening has not yet been determined. There is also discussion about which cluster may open next: EU diplomats doubt the appropriateness of cluster two (internal market) due to wartime conditions and are leaning towards cluster three — "competitiveness."
The agreement became possible after Orban suffered a crushing defeat in elections. But the structural problem remains: one prime minister's declaration on Facebook is not a ratified treaty, and commitments to implement legislative changes "in the near future" contain neither deadlines nor sanctions for non-compliance.
If Kyiv enshrines the agreements in legislation by the end of summer — the first negotiating cluster will open by autumn. If the process drags on or the Verkhovna Rada refuses key amendments on Hungarian language in education, Budapest will have sufficient grounds to resume blocking — this time without accusations against Orban.
