"The Ministry of Defense has an evacuation plan in place to help Hungarian citizens and, if necessary, citizens of other nations to leave Ukraine," they wrote. More than 130,000 Transcarpathian Hungarians live in Ukraine.Continue reading
Hungary’s security is of utmost importance, so the Hungarian Defense Forces will deploy troops to the eastern part of the country in the coming days, Defense Minister Tibor Benkő announced. The first troops could be deployed as early as Tuesday afternoon, so military movements on the country’s roads can be expected.
This article was originally published on our sister-site, Ungarn Heute.
Benkő said at a press conference after a meeting of the national security committee that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán had instructed him to task the army with preventing any possible armed incursions into Hungarian territory.
He added that the situation in Ukraine may escalate and affect Kiyv and Transcarpathia in the western part of the country, so Hungarian servicemen at the border must also prepare to handle the arrival of refugees and see to other humanitarian tasks, he said.
“The Hungarian armed forces have two tasks: one is to provide humanitarian aid, and the other is to close Hungary’s borders and ensure that no armed group can enter Hungary. To this end, I have ordered the deployment of armed forces to the eastern region of Hungary, in appropriate numbers and with appropriate equipment. In other words, the border must be reinforced,” said the defense minister.
The Defense Minister stressed that “Hungary wants peace”; it is in favour of a peaceful, negotiated solution, but the Hungarian Defense Forces must be ready to carry out border protection and humanitarian tasks if necessary.
Featured photo illustration by Szilárd Koszticsák/MTI