KIEV (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st September, 2018) Hungary, by granting citizenship to Ukrainian nationals in the Zakarpattia region and urging them to conceal the fact from the Ukrainian authorities, is breaching the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said on Friday.
On Wednesday, the Ukrinform news agency reported that the Hunagarian consulate located in the border city of Berehove in Ukraine's Zakarpattia region granted citizenship to Ukrainian nationals instructing them not to notify the Ukrainian authorities of that. Klimkin stated that Kiev intended to expel the consul from the country. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto called the move unfriendly and threatened to hamper Kiev's integration with the European Union.
"The granting of citizenship itself is prohibited under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. Their activities on our soil are limited by what we allow them to do. This is a challenge to our national security," Klimkin told the 1+1 tv channel.
According to the minister, the consulate's call constituted a violation of Ukrainian legislation and was a manipulation.
"This is indeed a call for violation of our legislation on our territory and a manipulation. Many think that the problem with this video is granting citizenships. The problem is the call itself," Klimkin clarified.
The foreign minister also pointed out that the situation in the Zakarpattia region should not be compared with the situation in the conflict-torn eastern region of Donbas.
"Zakarpattia cannot be compared with Donbas, but [the situation in] Zakarpattia is difficult. There are Hungarians, Romanians there ... Everyone needs its own approach and we need it. Without such a policy and individual approach, there will be nothing," Klimkin said.
He said that Kiev should do more to support the Hungarian minority in Zakarpattia and to prevent Budapest from being the only party that tries to solve the issue.
"Sooner or later we will find common ground with Hungary. Hungary is also interested in that," the minister added.
Hungary has issued over 100,000 passports to residents of the Zakarpattia region, according to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry. Meanwhile, Ukrainian legislation bans dual citizenship. Budapest maintains that it has the right to issue passports to Ukrainians of Hungarian origin.
