Szijjártó announces meeting with Kuleba in Uzhhorod - Foreign Ministry
Foreign Ministers of Hungary and Ukraine, Péter Szijjártó and Dmytro Kuleba (Getty Images)
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba is set to meet with his Hungarian counterpart Péter Szijjártó in Uzhhorod on January 29. During the meeting, the two sides will discuss the organization of the meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, according to the spokesperson of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oleh Nikolenko, in a comment to RBC-Ukraine.
"On January 29 in Uzhhorod, a meeting is planned with the head of the Hungarian Foreign Ministry Péter Szijjártó, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, and the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andrii Yermak," Nikolenko revealed.
He said that the negotiations would be a continuation of recent political contacts between the two countries.
"The key topics will include organizing the meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to advance important decisions for Ukraine in the European Union and the comprehensive development of bilateral relations," Nikolenko summarized.
Szijjártó announced the meeting with Kuleba
Szijjártó announced the meeting with Kuleba the day before. The Hungarian Foreign Minister told journalists that they would hold talks to prepare for the meeting between Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and President Zelenskyy.
"If everything goes well, we will meet with our Ukrainian colleague, Minister Kuleba, in Uzhhorod on the confirmed date of January 29 to see if a high-level meeting can help the situation," Szijjártó said at a press conference.
Szijjártó also informed that he earlier had a phone conversation with the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andrii Yermak, during which he said that the Zelenskyy-Orbán meeting would make sense if it can yield results.
Zelenskyy-Orbán meeting
Regarding the possible Zelenskyy-Orbán meeting, it is known that in December, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a brief conversation with pro-Russian Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Argentina. The Ukrainian leader said that the conversation was open and concerned European affairs of the two countries.
It later became known that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán accepted the invitation from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for a bilateral meeting.
The negotiations are expected to cover a wide range of bilateral relations, from economics to minority issues, according to the Office of the President of Ukraine. It is worth noting that the Hungarian side vetoed the allocation of 50 billion euros to Ukraine last year. However, this issue is expected to be revisited in early February.
