It has been clear for years that the Hungarian government will not agree to a formal meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Committee until the Transcarpathian Hungarians get back their rights, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó stated in a statement broadcast live on the M1 channel in Bucharest on Tuesday.

Speaking about the meeting of the NATO foreign ministers, the head of the ministry confirmed the reports of the British newspaper Financial Times, according to which Hungary did not agree to the convening of the NATO-Ukraine Committee this time either, so the Ukrainian foreign minister will only attend the working dinner.

"This is not a new Hungarian position, we already made it clear years ago that as long as the Hungarian national community living in Subcarpathia does not get back the rights they are entitled to, Hungary will not agree to the convening of a formal meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Committee."

he stated.

Péter Szijjártó emphasized: since the war in Ukraine broke out, everyone can see and experience that our country does not mention the issues related to the rights of the Transcarpathian Hungarians.

"We don't mention them, but we haven't forgotten these cases either"

he said.

"We hope that the war will end as soon as possible, and when the war is over, we will have the opportunity to discuss these issues again"

he added.

"We cannot back down from this position and we don't want to"

- he said, underlining that

the government still considers it extremely important to ensure the rights of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine.

Finally, the minister reported that an informal, so-called non-paper-type initiative was made in connection with the meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Committee, which Hungary and Turkey did not sign.

"I think that the participation of the Ukrainian foreign minister in an informal meeting tonight provides an appropriate platform for the consultation demands that NATO member states have formulated," he said.

Everything must be done to avoid a direct NATO-Russia conflict

Everything must be done to avoid a direct armed conflict between NATO and Russia, as a possible escalation would affect the geographically closest areas the most, so the focus should be on peacebuilding, taking into account the approach of winter, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said on Tuesday in Bucharest .

According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the head of the ministry, reporting from the NATO foreign minister's council meeting, praised the calm shown by Warsaw after the missile strikes in Poland just two weeks ago, about which he repeatedly expressed his concern.

" It is thanks to the presence of mind and extremely responsible behavior of the Polish leaders that today here in Bucharest we are not discussing the developments of the Third World War, " he stated.

As pointed out,

had they not reacted so calmly, the war could easily have escalated, with " serious consequences that no one wants to face ".

Then, on the other hand, he called the behavior of all journalists and politicians, who " immediately after the rockets hit, not only thought they knew, but also trumpeted to the world that there had been a deliberate rocket attack ." They were both playing with fire and could have easily caused the escalation of the war, " he underlined.

Péter Szijjártó then warned that as long as the armed conflict lasts, there is a danger of escalation, and not only specific physical attacks, but also certain irresponsible statements and decisions can have tragic consequences. He emphasized: As a neighboring state, Hungary is fully aware of the risks, which is why it is extremely interested in peace.

„We know that the possible escalation of the war would not first affect the countries hundreds or thousands of kilometers away, not on the other side of the ocean, but the geographically closest areas”

he said.

In this regard, he welcomed the fact that the NATO Secretary General made it clear that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is not a party to the conflict, and expressed the hope that it will remain so, because, as he said, everything must be done to improve the relationship between NATO and Russia. to avoid a direct collision.

The minister reported that our country is carrying out its largest ever humanitarian action, it has accepted more than one million refugees from neighboring countries, and children from Ukraine now study in approximately 1,300 schools and kindergartens.

" Winter is approaching, and this winter may bring with it a tragic, terrible, huge humanitarian disaster, even bigger than the ones before. I believe that the difficulties of the period ahead of us highlight the importance of achieving peace, that only peace provides a solution to the difficulties and tragedies caused by war, but peace offers a solution to all problems. That is why we are interested in peace in Ukraine as soon as possible, " the minister said.

He then added: all factors that could lead to the escalation of the war must be excluded, communication channels must not be eliminated, but at least the possibility of strategic communication with Moscow must be maintained.

Finally, he thanked Turkey for its mediation activities and welcomed the recent meeting between high-ranking American and Russian intelligence officials.

MTI / hirado.hu

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