The majority of Hungarians do not support Ukraine’s accession to the EU, according to a recent opinion poll conducted by the Nézőpont Institute for the Magyar Nemzet newspaper.
The survey revealed that a majority of 62 percent of Hungarians disagree that Ukraine should join the European Union, and just one in four (26 percent) agree.
Even 44 percent of left-wingers and 54 percent of those in the left-leaning capital of Budapest who generally oppose the government’s position do not agree with Ukraine’s accession. Less than a third (30 percent) of Budapest residents support Ukraine’s membership.
The majority of pro-government voters are united in their opinion, with almost four-fifths (78 percent) opposing Ukraine’s accession. However, the left-wing parties face a difficult task, as the same proportion of left-wing voters consider Ukraine’s accession to the European Union to be unacceptable (44 percent) as would support it (44 percent).
Meanwhile, the radical right-wing opposition, Mi Hazánk, also has a clear opinion on the issue, with 81 percent of its voters opposing Ukraine’s accession.
The survey showed that no other social group (by gender, age, or location) is in favor of the neighboring country’s accession.
In its analysis of the polling, the Nézőpont Institute highlighted that one of the 11 questions in the Hungarian government’s national consultation, which is just starting, concerns the accession of war-torn Ukraine to the European Union.
While the EU leadership in Brussels is increasingly pushing for the Ukrainians to negotiate their accession, the Hungarian government will not support it as long as the rights of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia are violated.
The analysis suggests that major changes would be needed from the Ukrainian leadership to change this position.
