The European Commission and several member states are exploring ways to bypass Hungary’s veto, according to a report, citing EU officials and diplomats
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has slammed the European Union’s reported plans to fast-track Ukraine’s membership bid, describing the move as “an open declaration of war” against Hungary.
The European Commission is working on proposals to accelerate Kyiv’s accession process, potentially granting Ukraine partial EU membership before it completes all required reforms.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged that his country join the bloc by 2027 as part of any future peace agreement with Russia, reported Politico.
Orbán, who is widely seen as maintaining close ties with Moscow, has been a vocal opponent of Ukraine’s EU membership.
According to a Politico report, citing EU officials and diplomats, the European Commission and several member states are exploring ways to bypass Hungary’s veto.
Options under discussion reportedly include seeking pressure from US President Donald Trump on Budapest or invoking Article 7 of the EU treaty to suspend Hungary’s voting rights, added the report.
Responding to the reports, Orbán said in a post on X on Wednesday that such steps would amount to “an open declaration of war against Hungary.”
Orbán said that Politico had “published Brussels’ and Kyiv’s latest war plan, the five-point Zelenskyy plan.”
“They have decided that Ukraine will be admitted to the Union as early as 2027,” he was quoted as saying. “They disregard the decision of the Hungarian people and are determined to remove the Hungarian government by any means necessary,” he added.
Hungarians are set to vote in a closely fought general election in April.
Orbán, who has ruled for the past two decades, is trailing in opinion polls, with his Fidesz party facing a resurgent opposition that has pledged to tackle corruption and restore the rule of law.
The Hungarian prime minister has frequently clashed with Zelenskyy and has made Ukraine’s prospective EU membership a key campaign issue, casting Kyiv and Brussels as threats to Hungary’s sovereignty.
“This April, at the ballot box, Hungarians must stop them,” he said. “Fidesz is the only force standing between Hungary and Brusselian rule, and the only guarantee of Hungarian sovereignty.”
With inputs from agencies
End of Article
