'There is a limit to the abuse of veto': EU prepares response to Hungary blocking Ukraine's European integration.

The European Union discusses possible ways for Hungary and Ukraine

The European Union is discussing possible ways to prevent Hungary from undermining the process of opening negotiations for Ukraine's EU membership, sources familiar with the situation report.

According to Bloomberg, during a closed discussion last week, some member states urged the European Commission to explore options for opening the first chapter of negotiations despite Budapest's objections regarding the treatment of Hungarian minorities in western Ukraine.

'There is a limit to the patience of member states regarding malicious abuse of the veto,' said Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin in an interview with Euronews. 'We have seen this unfold regarding Ukraine. We have a range of tools that we can use, and we should not be afraid to employ them.'

Ukraine's progress towards EU membership

According to representatives from member states, Budapest aims to torpedo the process by planning to hold a 'national consultation' on Ukraine's EU membership. This comes despite Hungary's earlier approval of opening negotiations for membership in 2023, lifting its veto only after Brussels unlocked 10 billion euros in EU funds.

Experts note that there are ways to circumvent this obstacle. While unanimity is required to start and conclude EU membership negotiations, the opening or closing of individual chapters in this process does not legally require unanimous consent.

Ukraine's membership application gained new momentum after Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. Although Brussels has ruled out any quick path for Ukraine, emphasizing that the process must be merit-based, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised Kyiv's progress in implementing reforms despite the ongoing war.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who maintains close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, has made opposing Ukraine's EU membership a central theme of his electoral campaign. He claims that Ukraine's EU membership would 'ruin' Hungary's economy, although Hungarian public opinion remains divided over Ukraine's accession to the European Union.