REUTERS

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says Ukraine is seeking compromises in relations with Hungary, but will not betray own interests.

The minister noted the spread of "fake news" regarding his recent visit to Budapest, where he met with Hungarian counterpart Péter Szijjártó. He took on social networks to refute false statements and clarify facts.

"First fake: Ukraine creates the Berehove district in Hungary's interests. True: The Berehove district has long and finely existed, and has the right to continue to be in place. It's only about supplementing it with the Vynohradiv district within the reform. It was not the foreign ministry that made the decision to add this district. The foreign ministry has nothing to do with the administrative territorial reform," he wrote on Facebook.

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"Another fake: Kuleba during his visit to Budapest made a commitment to create the Berehove district. True: I made no such commitments during my Budapest visit. The foreign ministry is conducting no negotiations with any country on creating 'ethnic' districts. Such negotiations would be contrary to the Constitution, legislation, and national interests of Ukraine," the minister said.

Read alsoExperts concerned over Ukraine's concessions to Hungary in Zakarpattia region

Kuleba also labeled as "fake" the allegation that diplomats had betrayed Ukrainian interests in bilateral relations with Hungary.

"True: diplomats are working to normalize relations with Hungary because this meets the strategic interests of Ukraine, including those of our Euro-Atlantic integration, and of Central Europe as a whole. In the foreign ministry, we are seeking compromises in Ukrainian-Hungarian relations, but we will never betray our interests, we will not cross the 'red lines' that would harm Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. By the way, we stand firmly on one of them, and I have repeatedly addressed this publicly: we reject the requirements for additional amendments to the education law," Kuleba said.

In addition, he said the principled and official position of the foreign ministry is that "no foreign country has the right to tell Ukraine how to arrange communities, districts or regions."

"To us, any interference by a foreign state in the internal affairs of Ukraine is absolutely unacceptable," Kuleba added.

As UNIAN reported earlier, on May 29, Kuleba paid a visit to Budapest to meet with Szijjártó.

Following the meeting, he said that together with his Hungarian counterpart he would recommend Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to hold a meeting in Kyiv in July.

Read alsoUkraine, Hungary move to settle differences over minority legislation

Kuleba said Ukraine offered that a document be signed with Hungary fixing that ethnic Hungarians represent "historical and cultural heritage" of Zakarpattia region, not its "problem".

In turn, Szijjártó said the three joint commissions of Ukraine and Hungary in June should agree on steps that will resolve disputed issues in relations between two countries.