A new bill numbered 16119, introducing the special status of a "national minority school," has been officially registered in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. This legislative initiative aims to resolve a long-standing language dispute with Hungary and unblock Ukraine's further steps toward full membership in the European Union. According to Sergiy Babak, head of the parliamentary committee on education, science, and innovation, the document is the result of long and complex interstate consultations.
Essence of the Innovations and Threshold for Obtaining Status
According to the text of the registered document, the status of a "national minority school" will be granted exclusively to educational institutions where more than 50% of students receive educational services in the language of the respective national minority. This approach allowed the authorities to move away from the initial agreements of the previous negotiating team, which considered granting status if at least one specialized class existed. Experts note this prevents absurd situations where a large school of a thousand pupils would get a special status because of five children.
Background and European Standards
The need to revise previous agreements was also dictated by practical risks in border regions, where classes of several minorities, such as Hungarian and Romanian, could operate within the walls of a single school. Ultimately, the Ukrainian side agreed on a "mirror requirement" that fully complies with similar legal norms in Hungary's own legislation and the vast majority of EU member states. This decision demonstrates Kyiv's readiness to implement European standards for minority rights protection.
Implications for European Integration and Budapest's Position
The adoption of this bill is a fundamental condition of official Budapest in exchange for dropping its blockade of Ukraine's European integration process. As Sergiy Babak emphasized, the reached agreement implies that after the law is passed by parliament, the next two negotiation clusters on EU accession will be immediately opened, and Hungary will lift its veto. The compromise has already received positive political assessments from the leadership of Hungary, opening a window of opportunity for further EU enlargement.
