Ukraine adopts law key to advancing EU accession talks

Ukraine’s parliament said the new law protects national minorities’ rights without undermining the status of the Ukrainian language. (AFP pic) KYIV: Ukraine on Monday passed legislation protecting the rights of national minorities, in a move expected to remove a major stumbling block to the country's EU ambitions.

Hungary had been blocking the opening of so-called negotiation "clusters" – policy areas with which EU candidates must align their laws – accusing Kyiv of failing to protect the rights of Ukraine's Hungarian minority.

Ukraine has long said it respected minority rights but nonetheless negotiated with Budapest over a possible law in a bid to accelerate its EU bid.

Kyiv's parliament voted Monday to pass the legislation, which President Volodymyr Zelensky then signed into law, his office said.

"A Ukrainian law has been passed that ensures the rights of national minorities without compromising the status of the Ukrainian language," the parliamentary press service said.

The law, it added, would "expand opportunities for the use of the languages of national minorities of Ukraine that are official languages of the European Union" in the educational system.

Hungary's foreign minister Anita Orban commended the move, saying it was "a necessary condition" for Hungary to agree to the opening of new EU talks.

Hungarian prime minister Peter Magyar said the approval of the law was a "good sign".

Magyar was elected earlier this year, ending the long rule of nationalist Viktor Orban, who had close relations with Russia.

"There is still a great deal to be done to ensure that relations improve once again and that trust is restored on both sides, but I believe that the leaderships of both countries have taken the first steps towards resolving the situation," Magyar said.

The status of the Hungarian-speaking minority in western Ukraine has long caused tensions between the neighbours.

Budapest had blocked Ukraine's EU membership bid, officially submitted days after Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The EU's enlargement commissioner Marta Kos hailed the new law as "crucial to keep reforms moving."

"Tomorrow, we plan to open two more negotiating clusters on Ukraine's EU path," she added.