The government will do everything it can to protect Hungarian interests and those who jeopardize those interests can expect to face the State, János Lázár, the minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office, has said.
Lázár said Ukraine's education legislation "crudely violates the rights of the Hungarian minority” and said it was shameful and unacceptable. The Hungarian government had asked Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko not to sign the law, and to honor his undertaking to guarantee the right of the Hungarians in Transcarpathia to use their mother tongue.
The minister said Hungary regards the law as a stab in the back, "in consequence, Ukraine is losing one of its friends”. He reiterated that Hungary has expressed its support for the Ukrainian people on a number of occasions, including the issue of visa-free travel to the EU.
He said Hungary will seek legal remedy at every international forum in order to guarantee the right of the Hungarians living in Ukraine to use their mother tongue and to study in their mother tongue.
The minister also pointed out that Hungary had taken action against Croatia’s OECD membership due to "the violation of economic interests”.