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“It is time for Brussels to stand up not only for the Ukrainian Government, but also for the Ukrainian people and the Hungarians living in Transcarpathia, Ukraine,” said Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in a video posted on Facebook after the Hungarian Government initiated a motion in Brussels on Tuesday to immediately add the Ukrainian leaders responsible for the death of József Sebestyén to the European Union’s human rights sanctions list.
The head of government stated that the entire Carpathian Basin had been shaken by the images proving that Hungarian József Sebestyén had been beaten to death by individuals described as recruiters during forced conscription.
Nothing justifies the brutality with which Ukraine treated József Sebestyén. His fate is a clear illustration of the conditions prevailing in Ukraine, the state-directed lawlessness, and the complete absence of legal certainty,”
Viktor Orbán said.
The Prime Minister emphasized that the case exposes the Brussels machine’s praise for Zelenskyy and proves why Ukraine cannot be a member of the European Union.
“József Sebestyén was not only Ukrainian, but also Hungarian, and therefore a citizen of the European Union. Today, the Hungarian Government has initiated a move in Brussels to have the Ukrainian leaders responsible for the death of Hungarian citizen József Sebestyén added to the European Union’s human rights sanctions list with immediate effect,” Orbán said.
He added that the EU has already applied this practice several times in the case of other countries.
On Tuesday in Brussels, Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said that according to the latest report by the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, systematic violations of human rights, deaths, and torture are taking place in Ukraine during conscription. “It is a fact that manhunts are taking place on the streets of Ukraine under the guise of conscription. It is a fact that people are dying because they do not want to fight,” said FM Szijjártó, who called the indifference of European politicians outrageous.
The @coe report confirmed deaths, torture and brutal abuse during forced conscription in Ukraine. The Hungarian government proposes placing the Ukrainian officers who beat a Hungarian man to death on the EU’s human rights sanctions list. pic.twitter.com/dLCH3jFbwK
— Péter Szijjártó (@FM_Szijjarto) July 15, 2025
The Minister also announced that Hungary would officially initiate EU sanctions against Ukrainian military leaders responsible for the death of a Hungarian citizen. FM Szijjártó also emphasized that Hungary continues to oppose Ukraine’s rapid accession to the EU, as “more than two million Hungarians have clearly expressed their desire not to be part of an integration with Ukraine.”
Via MTI; Featured photo: X/Péter Szijjártó