Hungarian PM does not oppose Ukraine's EU accession but sees "no reason" for talks

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has said that he does not oppose Ukraine's accession to the EU, but insists on "following the procedures".

Source: Orbán, in a conversation with journalists before the first day of the EU leaders' summit, reported by European Pravda

Details: When asked whether he opposed Ukraine's accession to the EU, Orban said that he "insisted on the procedure", without specifying which procedure he was talking about.

"Enlargement is not a theoretical issue. It is a legally justified process that has seven prerequisites. Even according to the European Commission, three of the seven prerequisites have not been fulfilled [by Kyiv], so there are no grounds to negotiate Ukraine's membership," he said.

Commenting on the issue of allocating €50 billion to Ukraine, which Budapest threatened to block, Orban said that "the money for Ukraine in the short term has already been budgeted".

"If you want to provide long-term and larger assistance, we must find funds outside the budget, and we support this," he said.

Background:

• President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that during a conversation with the Hungarian PM, he asked him to name at least one reason why Ukraine should not be in the EU. 
• On Wednesday, Zelenskyy also stated that if Hungary blocks the EU's decision, it would mean that Putin had vetoed it.

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