Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar reacted strongly to Budapest’s inclusion in the Ukrainian «Carpathian Eight» initiative. He stated that Hungary had not given its consent to participate in the initiative, and compared the situation to the formation of a football team in a neighbouring village, to which a person had been signed up without their knowledge.
• Péter Magyar stated that Hungary had not agreed to be a member of the «Carpathian Eight».
• He compared the situation to setting up a football team without the consent of one of its «players».
• Andriy Sybiga described Budapest’s latest statements as «unjustifiably confrontational».
• Ukraine has established a framework for cooperation in the fields of security, energy, logistics and trade.
• The dispute marked yet another episode of tension in relations between Kyiv and Budapest.
Mágyár claimed that Hungary had been «registered» without its consent
Peter Magyar replied on the social media platform X to a post by the Ukrainian Minister for Foreign Affairs Andrey Sibiga.
According to the Hungarian Prime Minister, it is unacceptable to include a sovereign state in an international initiative without prior consultation or its explicit consent.
«Let me give you an example: “Hello, we’ve set up a football team in the neighbouring village. We don’t know each other, but you’re on the team, and you need to bring the ball”,» wrote Madyar.
This is how he commented on the Ukrainian initiative «The Carpathian Eight», which Kyiv presented as a new regional format for cooperation.
On 21 September, Mádár stated that Hungary is not a member of this forum and will not be joining it. According to him, Budapest received an invitation but decided not to accept it.
Sibiga criticised Budapest’s stance
Before Mádya responded, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga stated that Kyiv was surprised by the Hungarian Prime Minister’s recent «unjustifiably confrontational» remarks.
According to Sibiga, the «Carpathian Integration Initiative» is aimed at regional development, interconnectivity and the implementation of joint projects. He also stated that he did not understand the reasons behind Hungary’s categorical refusal to participate. The Ukrainian minister added that following the resignation Viktor Orban, in his view, some aspects of Budapest’s previous policy towards Ukraine have remained in place.
This was Sibiga’s political assessment, with which the Hungarian side did not agree. In response, Hungary’s Foreign Minister Anita Orbán stated that the new government had already made a number of «gestures of goodwill» towards Ukraine and rejected comparisons with the previous government’s policy.
What is the «Carpathian Eight»?»
The initiative was presented by the president Volodymyr Zelenskyy 18 September, during the summit in western Ukraine.
Reuters reported at the time that the new format was designed to deepen cooperation in the field of energy, logistics, cross-border trade and security. During the forum, more than 50 agreements were signed, with a total value of over €1 billion.
In its initial description of the format, Reuters listed Romania, Serbia, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary and the EU among the participants. However, following the summit, the Hungarian government publicly stated that Budapest did not consider itself a participant in this initiative.
Consequently, Hungary’s status within the format has become the subject of public debate between Kyiv and Budapest.
The dispute concerns more than just the «Carpathian Eight»
At the same time, another dispute arose between the parties — regarding the possible establishment of storage facilities for petroleum products in Hungary to meet Ukraine’s needs.
Mágyar stated that there would be no such facility in Hungary whilst his government remained in power. Sibiga, for his part, emphasised that this is a matter of pragmatic cooperation between Ukrainian and Hungarian energy companies, agreed upon within the framework of a bilateral memorandum.
Despite the mutual criticism, the Ukrainian minister stated that Kyiv remains open to «mutually beneficial, pragmatic and mutually respectful» cooperation with Hungary.
