HUNGARY: ON THE BRINK OF A NEW CONFLICT WITH UKRAINE AND IMPROVING RELATIONS WITH THE UNITED STATES

Photo: hungarytoday.hu

There is a new rift in relations between Ukraine and Hungary. On April 6, law enforcement authorities of Ukraine, without any explanation, did not let the leader of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania Hunor Kelemen to enter Ukraine when he was going to the celebration of the 30th anniversary of Ukraine’s Transcarpathian Hungarian Cultural Association (KMKSZ) in Uzhhorod. At the border he received a stamp in his passport that is prohibiting entry into the country for 1.5 years. Hungarian Foreign Ministry state secretary Tamás Menczer stated that the ban on entry is “unacceptable” and “anti-Hungarian”.

At the same time, Hungarian-American relations began to improve rapidly. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary Péter Szijjártó and the Deputy Secretary of State of US John Sullivan signed an agreement on defence cooperation during the celebration of the NATO`s 70th anniversary in Washington.