Posted on 01/21/2018 10:10:11 AM PST by NorseViking
The relations between Ukraine and Hungary have now shifted from friendly-neutral, as they were in the early 1990s, to a diplomatic war that for Kiev can turn into not only problems in the matter of European integration, but also possible separation of Transcarpathian Ukraine.
According to the Kyiv authorities, these processes are related not so much to the violation of the rights of linguistic minorities in Ukraine, but rather to the upcoming parliamentary elections in Hungary.
To the current round of confrontation between the two countries, the Law on Education, adopted in September in Ukraine, according to which teaching in schools will be conducted only in the Ukrainian language, cited. The languages of the national minorities, to which not only the Russian, but also the Hungarian, will be taught only until the fifth grade, and after 2020 the teaching in schools will in principle be purely Ukrainian.
The document caused sharp criticism of a number of countries, in particular, Hungary. Budapest appealed to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to investigate this Ukrainian law. Later, Hungary blocked the meeting of the Ukraine-NATO commission, which was to take place in December last year.
The other day the conflict has continued. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Siyarto unveiled a statement in which he demanded that Ukraine abandon the legislative norms for dubbing performances and newspapers of national minorities in the Ukrainian language.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.rambler.ru ...
Ukrainian political analyst Mikhail Pogrebinsky is convinced that "Transcarpathia has always considered itself more part of Hungary than Ukraine." It is difficult to disagree with the expert: in Transcarpathian Ukraine, locals speak mostly in Hungarian, or in the unusual surzhika of Ukrainian, Hungarian, Polish and Romanian, which is far from clear for all Ukrainians.
Hungarian and Ukrainian flags hang on houses, Hungarians travel to nearby Hungarian cities more often than to Kiev, moreover - many have not even been there, and children see their future more in European universities.
According to Pogrebinsky, the Ukrainian law on education, which prevents teaching in the languages of national minorities, has only intensified the centrifugal tendencies in Transcarpathia. On the other hand, the political scientist believes, it is unlikely that Hungary will ever require from Ukraine Transcarpathia itself. The political situation in the EU simply does not have this, and hence the hysteria that engulfed Ukrainian diplomats and politicians is somewhat premature.
For its part, Ukraine, naturally, would like to stop the centrifugal processes in Transcarpathia and does not see any other way than to get people there to learn the Ukrainian language. "Ukraine is simply too weak to resist Hungary for a long time. Ukraine is a weak state, and in Transcarpathia it is virtually none, "says Mikhail Pogrebinsky.
At the same time, many political experts draw direct parallels between what is happening now in Transcarpathian Ukraine with the active support of Hungary with the sentiments that reigned in the east of Ukraine just a few years ago.
"The current Kiev authorities are very mistaken, considering Ukraine a mono-national state. The desire of Eastern Ukraine to speak and teach its children in Russian was as natural as the current desire of Transcarpathians to continue their education in Hungarian, Romanian and Polish, which for them are native.
It is deeply incomprehensible to me at what point the country's leadership considered this to be dangerous for itself and began a struggle with its own people. But now there is a high risk that, following the Crimea and the Donbas, Ukraine will leave the Transcarpathian border, which until recently was considered one of the pillars of patriotism, "says expert, political strategist Dmitry Melnikov.
This conflict has already caused significant damage to Ukraine not only in domestic politics, but also in the external one. Thus, the Hungarian government intends to block all attempts by the European Union to continue the process of integrating Ukraine into it. Moreover, the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it will seek to dissolve the agreements already reached, which Kiev is so proud of - in particular, the regime of visa-free entry into the Schengen zone. For its part, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry issued a statement that "Hungary has the right to raise any issue within the EU. But decisions regarding Ukraine can not be made without Ukraine, which pays an extremely high price for its place in Europe. "
If we return to the internal political situation in Hungary itself, then because of the escalating conflict between the countries, a number of Hungarian political forces began to play a map of separatism in Transcarpathian Ukraine. For example, the Hungarian party "Jobbik" intends to hold an action "Self-determination for Transcarpathia". In March 2014, the party has already conducted similar actions in support of the Crimea and the Donbass.
And the Hungarian foreign minister met with the Hungarian community during his visit to Transcarpathia and refused to meet with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine regarded these actions as a serious violation of diplomatic etiquette. In the opinion of Irina Gerashchenko, the First Vice-Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, the activation of such sentiments is directly related to the forthcoming parliamentary elections in Hungary. "In Hungary, elections are coming soon, and some local politicians use the protection of the Hungarian-speaking population abroad as an internal unifying trump card. As for me, a very specific trump borrowed in the Kremlin, "Gerashchenko said.
As noted by the leading researcher of the Institute of Slavic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Alexander Stykalin, the current government of Hungary puts the protection of Hungarian diasporas abroad at the center of the corner. "The adoption of the new law on education in Ukraine led to the fact that more than 150 thousand Transcarpathian Hungarians lost the opportunity to receive in their native language, not only higher, but even secondary education. And the leadership of Hungary can not take it positively, "- says the expert. According to Stykalin, Budapest, despite strained relations with Romania, is joining forces with Bucharest to prevent Kiev from joining the EU.
A characteristic for Ukrainian outlook is the assessment of the Ukrainian military expert Alexei Arestovich, who is convinced that after recent statements by Budapest, not only Russia but Hungary is a military threat to Ukraine, and this situation will most likely last the next 20 years.
Europeans will never stop fighting these stupid battles based on centuries old border shifts.
That is not exactly about border.
Mostly the demographic complexities of a region that was the result of the border between Hungary (or whomever controlled it) and the Ukraine (or whomever controlled it) washing back and forth over the centuries.
Who can blame these people for wanting to part of their kin and culture?
And who can blame them for NOT wanting to be part of the failed, incorrigibly corrupt Ukraine?
Hungary is a vibrant, healthy state with a rich and mature culture. And these people are Hungarian.
That might cause a chain reaction. There are sizeable Polish and Romanian minorities too.
Ukraine is having a spat with Poland, too, so Poland is the next country Ukraine will decide is a "military threat to Ukraine". One, IMHo, Ukraine will be sorry they started screwing around with.
The point is it’s hard to be a Nazi without Wermacht and Luftwaffe on hand. Being at odds with everyone else requires some military capabilities.
Hey, they know which way the border is.
They are citizens of the Ukraine. If they want to be citizens of Hungary, then they can go live in the nation of Hungary.
Yeah, it’s not all fun torch lit parades and cool uniforms once someone says, “NO” to your BS.
Which Ukraine? The one that existed prior to the Soviets redefining the borders in the twenties or the one that existed prior to the Soviets?
I think it's funny as Hell that the people who are convinced the evil Ruskies are all still just the USSR in suits instead of uniforms grant Lenin, Stalin, and Khrushchev, the ultimate authority to permanently redefine the borders of Ukraine multiple times between the twenties and the fifties but who think nothing of bombing Yugoslavia out of existence because it had borders defined by evil Yugoslav Communists.
My money is on the Poles. Totally.
Soon as Hungary takes this region, they can invade the Banat and take it back from Romania and Serbia.
Poland is the Rodney Dangerfield of Europe.
“Which Ukraine?”
The one you currently see on the map. It doesn’t matter how a border got to how it was as many borders in Europe were set by plenty of less than ideal events.
Should Hispanics in the SW have a case to send massive parts of the US back to Mexico because the Mexican Cession was based on a war started by some pretty specious reasoning?
The USSR hasn’t existed for a while. Hungary and the Ukraine could have worked out old border issues back then.
“No respect I tell ya. I told my kid “Someday you’ll have children of your own’’. He said “Yeah, someday so will you!’’.
Ukraine did not really exist before USSR too.
“But the borders of Syria, Libya, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Poland, and Georgia, are a different matter, right?
This isn’t a FEELINGS issue.
These borders are set by treaty. Short on invasion, secession (likely settled by war), or mutual exchange of territory, then it is what it is.
If the ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine aren’t willing to go to war to not be part of that nation, or if Hungary doesn’t want to invade, then those people need to stop acting like they dont have to be part of the Ukrainian state and the culture of it.
Not sure where you think I would apply a different standard to any of those other nations.
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