The Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Ukrainian ambassador to Budapest over the burning of a Hungarian church in Ukraine and the leaving of anti-Hungarian graffiti on the walls. The incident was also confirmed in Ukraine.
This was announced by Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Details are also reported by the Transcarpathian police.
Law enforcement officials say that on July 16, at around 10:00 PM, the police received a report of a church fire in the village of Palad-Komarivtsi, Uzhhorod district.
According to the investigation, an unknown person set fire to the entrance door and left a black inscription on the facade of the building that read "provocative in nature, aimed at inciting national and religious hatred". The police of the Transcarpathian region are already investigating the circumstances of the arson of the temple.
According to Hungarian officials, anti-Hungarian inscriptions such as “Down with the Hungarians”, “Death to the Hungarians”, and “Magyars at the knife” were left on the walls. Szijjártó says that this is supposedly “not an isolated incident”.
Віктор Орбан / Facebook
"For 10 years, the Hungarian community in Ukraine has been subjected to systematic attacks: first through laws that deprive it of its linguistic and educational rights, then through forced conscription, physical violence, and now arson," the Hungarian Foreign Minister wrote.
He says that “the Ukrainian state is clearly responsible for this”. In his opinion, it is unacceptable that despite this, the European Union is not reacting and at the same time accelerating the process of Ukraineʼs accession.
Orban noted that Hungarians in Transcarpathia can count on Hungary and that the country will not allow any intimidation.
Relations between Ukraine and Hungary
This is not the first incident between the countries recently. On July 10, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry summoned the Ukrainian ambassador over the death of a Hungarian citizen from Transcarpathia Josip Šebestřen, who was allegedly beaten by TRC soldiers. Because of this, Orban wants the EU to impose sanctions against Ukraine.
Parliamentary State Secretary of the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Levente Magyar claimed that after detaining the Hungarian, TRC officers beat him with an iron bar, then pushed him into a van and took him to a draft center.
The Ground Forces Command stated that Sebestren was a citizen of Ukraine, mobilized on June 14 on legal grounds.
They claim that the man left the military unit without a weapon on June 18, and six days later went to the hospital in Berehove. During the examination, no injuries were allegedly found, and after diagnosing an acute stress reaction, the man was later hospitalized in a psychiatric facility.
Sebestren died on July 6, the Army cited pulmonary embolism as the cause.
- Hungary has consistently opposed military aid to Ukraine, its membership in the EU and NATO, and has called for the lifting of sanctions against Russia. The country even held a national consultation on whether Hungarians support Ukraineʼs accession to the EU. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has publicly urged citizens to vote against. However, this vote will not affect Ukraineʼs accession to the bloc.
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