Hungary is interested in improving relations with all its neighbors, said Péter Szijjártó in Brussels.Continue reading
On 8 August, President of the Republic Katalin Novák signed the letter of acceptance of the new Ukrainian Ambassador to Hungary, Fegyir Sándor, and on 22 August the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade also countersigned the letter. Almost four months on, the diplomat’s arrival has been virtually unobstructed, but still has to wait, reports Magyar Nemzet.
In fact, based on his social media posts, it does not seem that the candidate, who is of Transcarpathian origin and also has Hungarian ancestry, is particularly preparing for his departure, as he is still serving as a soldier. The timing is particularly interesting in the light of the fact that Szabad Európa and Index reported this summer that the President of the Republic had, for political reasons, deliberately put the file of the new Ukrainian diplomat aside, who has been on hold since March. By comparison, Hungarian Ambassador to Kiev Antal Heizer received his credentials from Katalin Novák in May and took up his post in September.
According to Magyar Nemzet, Fegyir Sándor is in fact being held back from Kiev. Their sources believe that this is partly for bureaucratic reasons: it is not easy to demobilize someone from the army and transfer him to a diplomatic post. On the other hand, they believe that it has political reasons, too: there is no consensus in the Kiev Foreign Ministry about him.
The paper has learned that
not everyone likes his gestures to the Hungarians, hence those who do not want to see Ukrainian-Hungarian relations improve are trying to thwart him.
For instance, Fegyir Sándor thanked NAFO Hungary on his social media page for the raincoats and sleeping bags that the fighters of the four battalions (68, 69, 73, 212) of the 101st Special Brigade of the Transcarpathian Territorial Defense received.
Kárpátalja Területvédelem 101. különálló dandár négy zászlóalj harcosai (68,69,73,212) esőkabátokat és hálózsákokat kaptak…
köszönöm #NAFOHungary pic.twitter.com/66xoRUfmtC
— Fedir Shandor (@FedirShandor) October 26, 2023
Opinions are divided as to who will ultimately win the debate. According to some sources, things could speed up soon, with only the bureaucratic hurdles to overcome before he can arrive in Budapest. Others, however, say that the fact that he has not yet been transferred to the Foreign Ministry, and therefore his diplomatic preparation has not even begun, is a cause for concern, and that it is not inconceivable that his nomination will be withdrawn in time. Magyar Nemzet also contacted the Ukrainian embassy about the delay, but had not received a reply.
It may be decisive whether the positions in Ukrainian-Hungarian relations will converge in the near future. Some movement away from the deadlock is already visible, as last Friday the Ukrainian parliament adopted a law on the rights of national minorities, taking into account EU recommendations. “Eight years ago, the rights of the Hungarian community in Ukraine started to be taken away, and since then the deprivation of rights has been ongoing. Yesterday’s decision by the Ukrainian parliament will of course be carefully assessed, but it is already clear that it is a long way from restoring the rights of 2015. Nevertheless, we will continue to monitor its implementation,” said Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Tamás Menczer on Saturday.
Via Magyar Nemzet, Featured image: Facebook/Fegyir Sándor