"Hungary will bring up the Ukraine's edu[cation] law at the EU foreign affairs council on 16 Oct. attempts to review the Ukr AA [Association Agreement] will be dismissed," Jozwiak wrote on Twitter on October 11, 2017.
#Hungary will bring up the #Ukraine’s edu law at the Eu foreign affairs council on 16 Oct. attempts to review the Ukr AA will be dismissed
— Rikard Jozwiak (@RikardJozwiak) October 11, 2017
In his words, the EU ambassadors are working on a compromise in which the "EU aspiration language in the EaP [Eastern Partnership] declaration for Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova can remain if there is a mention of the Dutch addendum to the Ukrainian Association Agreement that was agreed in December 2016."
EU ambs working on compromise in which EU aspiration language in the #EaP declaration for #Ukraine, #Georgia & #Moldova can remain if...1/2
— Rikard Jozwiak (@RikardJozwiak) October 11, 2017
...there is a mention of the Dutch addendum to the #Ukraine association agreement that was agreed in Dec 2016. 2/2
— Rikard Jozwiak (@RikardJozwiak) October 11, 2017
UNIAN memo. Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada on September 5 adopted the new law on education as part of the country's education reform.
According to the law, persons belonging to national minorities of Ukraine are guaranteed the right to study in public education institutions with the language of a respective minority as the language of instruction, along with the state language.
Persons who belong to the indigenous peoples, national minorities of Ukraine, who have started to receive general secondary education before September 1, 2018, shall continue to receive such education by September 1, 2020, in accordance with the rules enforced before the new law becomes effective, with a gradual increase in the number of classes taught in Ukrainian.
Foreign ministries of several countries, including Romania, expressed concern about the language norms of the law on education in respect to representatives of national minorities.
Read alsoKlimkin invites EU ambassadors to Zakarpattia region over Hungary's position on education lawIn turn, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine assured that the language provisions of the new law did not violate the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.
Language-related Article 7 of the education law was sent to the Venice Commission late in September for expert evaluation. Its conclusion on the article is expected by December.
Hungary's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto later announced his country's intention to block any further rapprochement between Ukraine and the EU over the language row.
Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Pavlo Klimkin tweeted on October 9 to invite Szijjarto to a joint visit to Zakarpattia region to discuss the language provisions of the education law. However, Szijjarto refused to meet with Klimkin, saying that his Ukrainian counterpart was late with the proposal, and the meeting with Zakarpattia's Hungarians should have taken place before the adoption of the education law.
