Ukraine and Hungary

With the loosening of central control, the fifteen “Socialist Soviet Republics” started to (re)assert themselves. After the failed coup in August 1991, following the Baltic states, Ukraine declared itself independent. Even before that Hungary started to build special relations with its largest neighbor, and on December 6, 1991, signed a treaty with Kiev “on good-neighborhood and cooperation.” An integral part of the treaty was a Protocol on the protection of national minorities. That provided extensive political rights to the then about 200,000 strong Hungarian community of Sub-Carpathia, including education in Hungarian up to the age of 18. In the next decade, Hungary had most cordial relations with Ukraine. Due to the growth of Ukrainian national feeling, much strengthened by Russia’s seizure of Crimea and territories in the eastern border area, in 2017 Ukraine passed a new Law on Education. The new law restricted teaching in the language of a national minority only until the age of 10, above that making the required language of instruction Ukrainian. Hungary has been severely critical of the change, and retaliated by blocking Ukraine's western integration into the European Union and NATO. The conflict contributed to Hungary’s unfriendly policy towards Ukraine following Russia’s aggression in February 2022. Ukraine later modified the law so that instruction could continue in the languages of the national minorities. Since that change, there have been signs of a thaw in bilateral relations.