Hungary blocks opening of two final negotiation clusters for Ukraine

Hungary at a meeting of the EU Council working group on enlargement (COELA) in Brussels on Tuesday, 27 October, refused to approve the screening results for the fourth and fifth negotiation clusters on Ukraine’s accession to the European Union.

This is reported by “European Pravda” citing informed EU diplomats.

“Hungary’s position has not changed,” the publication’s source noted.

According to sources, the Irish presidency of the EU Council knew in advance that Budapest did not intend to change its position regarding Ukraine’s further progress toward opening the fourth and fifth clusters. Despite this, the issue was again placed on the working group’s agenda for 27 October.

Another diplomat expressed the view that bringing the issue up for repeated discussion was more political in nature and was a way to increase pressure on Budapest rather than a real attempt to secure a positive decision at this particular meeting.

Cluster 4, “Green agenda and sustainable connectivity,” covers in particular transport, energy, trans-European networks, the environment and climate change. Cluster 5, “Resources, agriculture and cohesion policy,” includes agriculture, fisheries, regional policy and budgetary provisions.

These are the last two negotiation clusters that have not yet been opened for Ukraine. Kyiv hopes to open them by the end of 2026.

Hungary blocked the opening of new negotiation clusters on Ukraine’s EU accession for months, demanding in particular the adoption of a law on education for national minorities. On 7 October, media reported that Budapest had lifted its veto on the opening of the second and third clusters, devoted to the internal market and competitiveness.

On 13 October, the European Union officially opened two more negotiation clusters on Ukraine’s accession. The decision to open the clusters became possible after the Verkhovna Rada adopted amendments to the education law in both readings and as a whole — as Hungary had demanded.

Later, on 16 October, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar held their first meeting during the EU summit. On 20 October, The Kyiv Independent, citing EU diplomats, reported that Hungary had blocked the opening of the final negotiation clusters.