Ukraine should not join the European Union, as this would “weaken“ it and would bring its conflict with Russia within the EU. This was stated by Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjarto in an interview with CNN, BTA reports.
Szijjarto confirmed that Budapest opposes the start of negotiations with Kiev regarding its future membership in the Union.
“Ukraine will definitely not make the European Union stronger. On the contrary, a country that is waging war brings war to the EU. And we do not want that. The current state of Ukraine will only weaken the Union“, he stressed.
According to him, Europe should not spend resources on a country that does not meet the criteria for membership.
The minister also expressed dissatisfaction with the financial support that the EU provides to Kiev:
„We do not want Hungarian taxpayers' money to go to Ukraine. Under the current circumstances, we categorically do not support its accession to the EU.“
Despite his harsh position, Szijjártó stressed that Hungary continues to provide humanitarian aid: it supplies electricity and accepts Ukrainian refugees.
„You say that we do not support Ukraine. But we help as much as we can. At the same time, we will not allow Hungary to be destroyed. Our people have already paid too high a price for this war, although we are not responsible for it. This is not our war“, Szijjártó also stated.