Sibiga responded to Madyar's statements regarding the Carpathian Eight and cooperation with Ukraine
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga expressed surprise at what he described as “unjustifiably confrontational” statements by Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar regarding Ukraine.
Sybiga noted that the Carpathian Integration Initiative should be aimed at the development of the entire region and involves cooperation between countries through joint projects.
“The reasons for Hungary’s categorical refusal remain unknown,” the minister remarked.
Earlier, Péter Magyar stated that Hungary is not a participant in the “Carpathian Eight” format, launched by Ukraine. According to him, Budapest received an invitation to join the initiative but decided not to accept it. The Hungarian prime minister did not explain the reasons for this decision in detail.
On September 18, Ukraine announced the creation of the “Carpathian Eight,” to which Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria, and Hungary were invited. At the same time, following the first summit, representatives from Ukraine, Austria, Poland, Romania, Serbia, and Slovakia signed the final declaration; Hungary was represented by its deputy ambassador in Kyiv.
According to Andriy Sybiga, the initiative is intended to promote prosperity, connectivity, and the implementation of mutually beneficial projects in the Carpathian region.
Separately, the Ukrainian minister responded to statements by Péter Magyar regarding cooperation between Ukrainian and Hungarian energy companies.
This refers to a memorandum signed on September 20 by Naftogaz and the Hungarian company MOL. The document provides for the joint development and possible implementation of a project to create storage facilities for petroleum products in Hungary near the Ukrainian-Hungarian border. The stated goals are to meet the needs of the Ukrainian market and diversify fuel supply routes.
Following this, Péter Magyar stated that his government would not allow the construction of oil storage facilities in Hungary for Ukraine’s needs. He also noted that negotiations between MOL and Naftogaz began during Viktor Orbán’s administration, but the current government considers it unacceptable to conduct such negotiations without its consent.
Sibiga called it strange that political statements are casting doubt on the “direct, pragmatic, and mutually beneficial cooperation between Ukrainian and Hungarian energy companies,” which was formalized in a bilateral memorandum.
“When politics interferes with pragmatic business cooperation, nothing good comes of it. The latest statements from Budapest leave us perplexed. It seems that, although Viktor Orbán has left, his policies of obstruction and isolationism continue to thrive,” Sibiga stated.
In this context, the foreign minister stated that “Orbanism” has not benefited either Hungary or the broader region in the past, and expressed his conviction that such policies will not yield positive results in the future either.
At the same time, Szibiga emphasized that Ukraine remains open to pragmatic, mutually beneficial, and mutually respectful bilateral cooperation with Hungary.
Despite Péter Magyar’s statement declining to participate, the Hungarian side was represented at the inaugural summit of the “Carpathian Eight.” However, Budapest did not agree to full participation in the format.
Thus, a public dispute arose between Ukraine and Péter Mátyás’s new government on two fronts simultaneously—Hungary’s participation in the “Carpathian Eight” and the joint energy project between Naftogaz and MOL.
The foreign minister wrote about this on social media platform X.
Prior to this, Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar stated that his government would not allow the construction of oil storage facilities on Hungarian territory intended to meet Ukraine’s needs.
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar also stated that his country had not joined the “Carpathian Eight” regional format initiated by Ukraine.
