Hungary's PM says Ukraine is still 'light years' away from EU

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Ukraine is "light years" away from the EU, implying that Kiev's path to joining the union is still far away.

Speaking at the Fidesz party congress on November 18, Prime Minister Orban reaffirmed the Hungarian government 's opposition to negotiations for Ukraine to join the European Union (EU).

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban attends a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, Belgium, in October. Photo: Reuters

“Correcting Brussels’ false promise to start negotiations with Ukraine on EU membership will also be our task, as Ukraine is still light years away from the EU,” he said.

At the party congress in Budapest, Prime Minister Orban was re-elected as Fidesz party leader for the 11th consecutive time since 2003. He later stressed that preventing Ukraine from joining the EU would be the Hungarian government's top priority in the coming months.

The EU executive Commission earlier this month suggested starting membership talks with Ukraine, saying the government in Kiev “has shown remarkable institutional strength, determination and operational capacity”.

But Prime Minister Orban, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, argued that talks should not start with a country in conflict and that Ukraine's accession would reorient the EU's system of distributing funds to member states.

Some analysts speculate that Hungary is using its opposition as leverage to push for concessions related to billions of dollars in funding that Brussels has withheld from Budapest over concerns that Prime Minister Orban's government is failing to uphold the rule of law and human rights standards.

Mr Orban also threatened to block an EU plan to provide a four-year aid package worth nearly $55 billion to Ukraine.

Vu Hoang (According to Reuters )

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