In an interview with news portal 444.hu, Sándor Fegyir, the Transcarpathian Hungarian born in Uzhhorod, Ukraine, told the news portal in a lengthy interview that he does not need a high position to work for good Ukrainian-Hungarian relations, writes Mandiner.
The former representative of Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s “Servant of the People” party, a veteran of the 68th Battalion of the 101st Independent Brigade belonging to the Territorial Defense Forces, and known as the “Professor of Trenches,” is the nominee for Ukrainian ambassador in Budapest, although the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has still not confirmed his posting after a year and a half.
The diplomat said the following about the Ukrainian-Hungarian relationship:
“There is no conflict between Ukrainians and Hungarians at the front. The same applies to Transcarpathia. The nationalities live side by side, together. Problems can arise where there are no relationships, where people only know themselves and not others, they have no knowledge and lack personal experiences. Then, it is easier to find and imagine enemies. Such dilemmas do not even arise for those who have even basic information.”
Sándor also carries out educational activities, attempting to introduce Hungarian culture to Ukrainians in Facebook posts. He says he started this because “many people didn’t understand what I was talking about,” further explaining that information about Hungarians available to Ukrainians is all in Russian.”
Fegyir went on to add that this has led to ignorance and lack of communication, as the picture you get of Hungary in Ukrainian-language sources is one of hostility. “This picture was so distorted,” he said, adding that relations between Hungarians and Ukrainians “are more diverse and friendly.”
“That’s why I do what I do, that’s why I spread knowledge. There are no criticisms or attacks, there are direct positive consequences,” he said.
Fegyir noted that as a Ukrainian citizen, he has “no business commenting on the expressions of Hungarian politicians. This would not be fair, it is not my job to play political analyst, and I am not even a Hungarian voter. It is up to the Hungarian people to decide who they raise to power or who they keep there.”
As to Zelensky’s Victory Plan, he says it is best to discuss once there is peace, although in his mind, Ukraine has already won the war because the country has successfully shown that they are Ukrainians, not Russians, and they stood up for themselves: “Victory is when you have found your place in the world,” he said.
Regarding the Ukrainians’ NATO and EU membership, Sándor Fegyir says that “NATO is a difficult issue (but) the EU is different, it will definitely bring us on board since it has no other choice. The European Union has already invested so much in Ukraine that it would be impossible to repay it. In return, we have excellent farmland and an educated, talented, Christian population. Ukraine will be a gift to Europe.”
