Szijjarto: The accession of new members would strengthen the EU, with Serbia being a key country in the Western Balkans

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Peter Szijjarto stated that the accession of new members to the European Union would make the European bloc stronger, emphasizing that Serbia was a key country in the region, Euronews Serbia reports.

Szijjarto said that the European Commission had correctly determined that Serbia had made significant progress on the path to European integration, "The Budapest Times" reported.

Szijjarto highlighted that new accession chapters with Serbia should be opened as soon as possible to expedite the process.

Speaking about Ukraine, he stated that the country had not met the conditions for EU candidate status, emphasizing violations of minority rights.

Szijjarto added that the Hungarian Government believed it was time to debate the EU's future policy towards Ukraine.

"Given the ongoing war, it is clear that neither freedom of the media nor freedom of speech is respected in the country, and elections have not been held", he emphasized.

Szijjarto stated that it was entirely clear that Ukraine would not be ready for EU membership until peace was established.

"Ukraine will bring war into the European Union, which we do not want", Szijjarto emphasized.

He welcomed the European Commission's decision to grant candidate status to Georgia, stating that it should have been granted much earlier.