Expert names one of main contradictions between Ukraine and Romania
Illustrative photo (Getty Images)
Romania has the same concerns about Ukraine as Hungary does. However, the country's leadership has postponed these issues until after the war, citing the RBC-Ukraine article "Not only Patriot: How Romania secretly helps Ukraine amid economic tensions."
Just like with Hungary, the problem intensified in 2017 after the adoption of the education law. However, Romania did not issue ultimatums to Ukraine and pursued the path of preparing separate protocols concerning education in Romanian schools.
According to Romanian international relations expert Mihai Isac, Romanian politicians understood that it was not the time to blackmail Ukraine over these issues during the war.
“There is a deep concern regarding Romanian minorities in Ukraine, and Romania hopes that after the war, its positions and help provided to Ukraine will help during future negotiations,” he says.
Additionally, Bucharest expects that Ukraine will refine its legislation on national minorities as part of its EU accession process, just as Romania once did.
Backstory
In December last year, before Ukraine received the "green light" to begin accession talks with the EU, the European Commission considered four of the seven criteria for starting this process to be fully met.
One of the criteria specifically mentioned the need to amend legislation on national minorities. In particular, it was noted that no changes had been made to the laws on the state language, media, and education.
As previously mentioned in an RBC-Ukraine article, the dispute over the rights of Hungarians in Ukraine began with the education law in 2017. It specifically concerned the language of instruction in schools attended by representatives of national minorities. It was anticipated that after studying in their native language in primary classes, students in secondary and senior grades would switch to Ukrainian. A transitional period was also provided until 2020.
Despite assurances that the law was not aimed against the Hungarian minority, Budapest perceived it as an attempt at assimilation, a violation of agreements, and a restriction of rights. This led to a profound systemic crisis in Ukraine-Hungary bilateral relations.
