--- title: "Zelenskyy and Magyar Hold First Face-to-Face Meeting: EU Accession, Rights of Hungarians in Transcarpathia, and Diplomacy" description: "Volodymyr Zelenskyy held his first closed, one-on-one meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar since the latter's election. The parties discussed Ukraine's EU accession, the rights of Hungarians in Transcarpathia, and a diplomatic settlement." date: 2026-10-16T11:27:08.369Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/zelenskyy-magyar-meeting-ukraine-hungary tags: [ukraine, hungary, zelensky, magyar, eu-accession, zakarpattia, diplomacy] author: "Marina Slivenko" publisher: "XAB.info" --- # Zelenskyy and Magyar Hold First Face-to-Face Meeting: EU Accession, Rights of Hungarians in Transcarpathia, and Diplomacy ![Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaking into a microphone during a meeting.](https://xab.info/media/2026/10/16/zelensky-magyar-vstrecha-ukraina-vengriya/zelensky-magyar-vstrecha-ukraina-vengriya-1.webp) ## Key Points - Zelenskyy held a face-to-face meeting with Magyar without delegations for the first time since Magyar's election as Prime Minister. - Topics of discussion included Ukraine's EU accession and closing the 4th and 5th clusters by the end of the year. - Magyar welcomed the agreement on the rights of Hungarians in Transcarpathia and the parliamentary decision regarding the 1944 and 1946 crimes. - The parties agreed to extend ministerial consultations; Magyar expressed solidarity with Ukraine and readiness to promote a diplomatic settlement. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has held a meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar. This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing a Radio Liberty correspondent. According to the publication, this is the first in-person meeting between Zelenskyy and Magyar since the latter was elected Prime Minister of Hungary. According to a source in the Ukrainian delegation, the negotiations took place in a closed, one-on-one format without the participation of delegations. ### Format and Key Topics of the Negotiations As RBC-Ukraine writes, one of the topics of the bilateral talks was Ukraine's accession to the European Union, specifically the issue of closing the fourth and fifth clusters by the end of the current year. These very clusters are traditionally considered the most difficult in the European integration process, and their closure is viewed as an important milestone on the path toward Kyiv's further rapprochement with Brussels. The closed nature of the meeting was announced in advance by Magyar himself, who stated that the talks would take place without outsiders. ### Rights of Hungarians in Transcarpathia and the Education Law Following the meeting, Peter Magyar published a post on Facebook featuring a photo from his meeting with Zelenskyy. According to him, the parties discussed bilateral relations and the rights of national minorities. The politician welcomed the political agreement on strengthening the rights of Hungarians in Transcarpathia, the adoption of the education law, and the beginning of its implementation. In addition, Magyar expressed gratitude for the Ukrainian parliament's decision officially recognizing that crimes were committed against Transcarpathian Hungarians during the deportations and forced labor in 1944 and 1946. ### Solidarity and Diplomatic Settlement During the meeting, the parties agreed to continue consultations at the ministerial level. Magyar expressed solidarity with Ukraine over the ongoing Russian aggression and stated Hungary's readiness to contribute to a diplomatic settlement. Thus, despite previously public disagreements between the two capitals, the negotiations demonstrate a course toward strengthening cooperation and discussing a number of sensitive issues, ranging from European integration to the status of national minorities. ### Context: Potential Unblocking of Ukraine's European Integration The meeting takes place against the backdrop of reports that Hungary may soon unblock Ukraine's European integration process. Previously, Budapest often acted as a key "brake" in this process, so any signals of readiness to move forward on the clusters and extend ministerial consultations are perceived as a significant shift in bilateral relations. Thus, behind the public disagreements, observers note, lies practical work on specific agreements. ## Fact-Check & Sources - [Зеленский впервые встретился с премьером Венгрии Мадьяром](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/zelenskiy-upershe-zustrivsya-prem-erom-ugorshchini-1792147914.html) - Primary source: the fact of the meeting, the one-on-one format, topics (EU, clusters 4 and 5), Magyar's Facebook publication, the parliamentary decision on 1944/1946, continuation of ministerial consultations, solidarity regarding Russian aggression. - [Зеленский и Нетаньяху впервые за два года поговорили лично в Вашингтоне](https://www.rfi.fr/ru/%D0%B2-%D0%BC%D0%B8%D1%80%D0%B5/20260729-%D0%B7%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9-%D0%B8-%D0%BD%D0%B5%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%8C%D1%8F%D1%85%D1%83-%D0%B2%D0%BF%D0%B5%D1%80%D0%B2%D1%8B%D0%B5-%D0%B7%D0%B0-%D0%B4%D0%B2%D0%B0-%D0%B3%D0%BE%D0%B4%D0%B0-%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B3%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%B8-%D0%BB%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%BE-%D0%B2-%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%88%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B3%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B5) - Separate event (meeting with the Prime Minister of Israel, July 28, 2026). Neither confirms nor refutes the meeting with Magyar; used only as general context of Zelenskyy's diplomatic activity. ## FAQ ### Is this the first time Zelenskyy has met with Magyar since the latter was elected Prime Minister? Yes, according to RBC-Ukraine citing Radio Liberty, this is the first personal meeting between Zelenskyy and Magyar since Magyar was elected Prime Minister of Hungary. ### In what format were the negotiations held? In a closed one-on-one format, without the participation of delegations. The closed nature of the meeting was announced in advance by Magyar himself. ### What main topics were discussed? Ukraine's EU accession and the closure of the 4th and 5th clusters by the end of the year, bilateral relations, the rights of national minorities (Hungarians in Transcarpathia), and a diplomatic settlement. ### What agreements did the parties reach? The parties agreed to continue consultations at the ministerial level; Magyar expressed solidarity with Ukraine over the Russian aggression and readiness to facilitate a diplomatic settlement.