As reported by the Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban on the official Facebook page

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced the results of a consultative referendum concerning the possible accession of Ukraine to the European Union. Over 2 million Hungarians participated in the vote, of whom 95% opposed Ukraine’s membership in the EU. Orbán shared this information on his Facebook page.

He thanked everyone who took part in the referendum, stating:

“Today, on behalf of more than two million Hungarians, I will say at the hearings that Hungary does not support Ukraine’s accession to the European Union.” – Viktor Orbán

The total population of Hungary exceeds 9.5 million people. During the 2024 European Parliament elections, 7.8 million voters were registered. The referendum saw participation from 29% of the total registered voters.

The referendum lasted 2.5 months – from April until June 20, 2025. Voting took place both at special polling stations and online. To participate in the online vote, identity confirmation via email was required. Orbán’s government noted that only 10% of Hungarians took advantage of the opportunity to vote online.

The leader of the opposition party “Tisza,” Péter Magyar, expressed doubts about the official figures, claiming that in reality only about 600,000 Hungarians participated in the referendum. He also emphasized that the figure of 2 million votes matches the number of voters for Orbán’s “Fidesz” party.

At the beginning of June, the Hungarian government launched propaganda videos as part of “national consultations,” claiming that the Ukrainian mafia is involved in arms and drug trafficking, and that Ukraine’s accession to the EU would allegedly allow this mafia to enter Hungary without hindrance. The videos also mention Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Hungary’s Blocking of Ukraine’s EU Accession

Since early 2025, Hungary has been blocking the opening of negotiation clusters regarding Ukraine’s accession to the European Union. The country’s government argues that Ukraine’s membership in the EU would be a burden both for the bloc and for Hungary itself.

Ukraine’s Minister of Justice, Olena Stefanishyna, reported that since May 12, Kyiv and Budapest have agreed to hold regular consultations to unblock the negotiation process.

However, on May 11, Hungary postponed negotiations with Ukraine on national minorities, which were scheduled for May 12, citing accusations from Kyiv of espionage against Budapest.

Although the consultative referendum in Hungary is not legally binding for the government, authorities actively urged citizens to oppose Ukraine’s EU accession by sending out relevant letters and spreading information about alleged threats to the country.

Hungary’s government announced on June 26 that 95% of participants in a national consultation opposed Ukraine’s accession to the EU, Hungarian news outlet Telex reported.

The poll, promoted by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government, has already drawn criticism over its credibility and turnout. Telex reported that the system could be manipulated — testing showed that users were able to vote twice using different email addresses.

According to Telex, 2,278,000 people participated in the consultation — approximately 29% of the electorate that voted in the 2024 European Parliament elections. Of those, the government claimed 95% voted against Ukraine joining the EU, while only 5% supported the bid.

Ukraine applied for EU membership shortly after Russia launched its war in 2022 and was granted candidate status within months. As an EU member, Hungary has veto power over further progress.

The consultation results were released on the eve of the European Council summit, giving Orban leverage to delay Ukraine’s membership. But the process itself has drawn skepticism.

Government spokesman Gergely Gulyas claimed printed ballots were notarized and secure, and that electronic votes, which made up 10% of the total, were being verified. However, he could not confirm whether the system could detect if someone voted both by mail and online.

Opposition leader Peter Magyar on June 22 dismissed the consultation as a “government propaganda campaign” and cited internal data from Magyar Posta indicating that only 3-7% of mailed ballots were returned.

“It’s the lowest-ever turnout for any such consultation,” Magyar wrote on social media.

Since 2010, Orban’s government has conducted more than a dozen similar national consultations — non-binding letter campaigns with leading questions designed to reinforce government positions.

Previous campaigns targeted topics like LGBTQ rights and EU migration policy. In one 2023 consultation, voters were asked whether they supported Brussels’ alleged plans to create “migrant ghettos” in Hungary — 99% voted no, with turnout under 20%.

On April 22, Orban said he voted against Ukraine’s accession to the EU in the consultation, publicly sharing photos of himself marking “against” on the poll ballot. He warned earlier this year that allowing Kyiv to join the EU would “destroy” Hungary.

Orban, the EU’s most openly pro-Russian leader, has blocked or delayed military aid to Ukraine, maintained close ties with President Vladimir Putin, and echoed Kremlin talking points.

Hungary’s opposition and Western critics view his administration as increasingly authoritarian, citing the erosion of press freedom, judicial independence, and electoral fairness.

Despite the low turnout and widespread allegations of manipulation, Orban is expected to use the consultation’s outcome to justify future obstruction of Ukraine’s EU integration.

Statement by Dan Nikushor published by the European Commission

Romanian President Nicușor Dan announced that on July 4, the European Union will begin the first round of negotiations for Moldova’s accession to the EU. This significant event will take place during the “EU – Moldova” summit in Chișinău, as reported by the European Commission.

The negotiations will start with the “Fundamental Values” cluster. Meanwhile, the European Council summit is scheduled for June 26-27 in Brussels. The draft communiqué planned for adoption following the meeting mentions the EU’s intention to strengthen sanctions against Russia, calls for a ceasefire, and the allocation of the promised €30.6 billion.

The summit will also discuss Ukraine’s progress in the EU accession process. Ukraine has already submitted documents for the European Commission’s review to open three negotiation clusters: “Foundations of the EU Accession Process,” “Internal Market,” and “External Relations.”

However, the opening of negotiations with Ukraine is delayed due to Hungary’s position. The government of this country has expressed the view that “Ukraine’s EU membership would be a burden both for the bloc and for Hungary.”

“26 member states are firmly convinced that we must open the first cluster. And we will see whether Prime Minister Orbán agrees to this or not.” – a senior European diplomat

Another diplomat confirmed that the decision to open the first negotiation cluster with Ukraine currently depends on Hungary, which continues to apply its veto.

It was previously reported that the EU is considering the possibility of separating the accession applications of Moldova and Ukraine. Hungary has been blocking the opening of negotiation clusters for Ukraine since early 2025.

Ukraine’s Minister of Justice, Olga Stefanishyna, called the statements about opening negotiations only with Moldova during consultations with Hungary unconstructive. She emphasized that Ukraine is actively implementing the EU’s recommendations within the 2023 and 2024 Enlargement Packages aimed at advancing reforms.

On May 1, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Koc declared that Ukraine and Moldova will open the first negotiation cluster together in the EU accession process. On May 28, she expressed hope that all negotiation clusters with Ukraine would be opened by the end of the Polish presidency of the EU Council in June 2025.

However, Hungary is blocking the opening of the first cluster. On June 26, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that he opposes Ukraine’s EU membership because he believes it “will bring war onto their territory.”

When asked by journalists whether Hungary would lift its veto after a ceasefire is announced, Orbán did not respond, noting that there is currently no ceasefire.

This audio is created with AI assistance

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban voted on April 22 in a national poll opposing Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, publicly sharing photos of himself marking “against” on the ballot.

The poll, announced by Orban in early March, officially launched on April 19 with ballot papers sent to Hungarian citizens, many of which explicitly encouraged them to reject Ukraine’s EU bid.

Orban criticized both Brussels and Hungary’s opposition Tisza party for supporting Ukraine’s membership, claiming it would harm Hungary’s economy and sovereignty.

“This will destroy the Hungarian economy. We won’t allow them to decide our future over our heads. I have already voted,” Orban wrote on Facebook.

Orban has been broadly seen as the most Moscow-friendly leader in the EU during Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine. The Hungarian prime minister has repeatedly blocked or delayed EU aid packages for Kyiv.

Despite the government’s resistance, recent polling shows public support for Ukraine’s accession. According to the party of Magyar Tisza’s “Voice of the Nation” initiative, which received over 1.1 million responses, 58.18% of participants backed Ukraine’s EU bid.

A separate April 7 poll by the Republikon Institute also found a narrow majority of Hungarians in favor of Ukraine joining the bloc.

Hungary’s national consultation on Ukraine’s accession to the EU had the lowest ever turnout at such a poll, Hungarian opposition leader Peter Magyar said on June 21.

“The… government propaganda campaign is a total failure. Based on information we received from multiple sources within Magyar Posta (Hungarian Post), only 3-7% of the sent ‘ballots’ were returned,” Magyar said in a post to social media.

The poll was announced by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in early March and officially launched on April 19 with ballot papers sent to Hungarian citizens. Many ballot papers explicitly encouraged voters to reject Ukraine’s EU bid.

Orban, on April 22, said he voted against Ukraine’s accession to the EU in the national consultation, publicly sharing photos of himself marking “against” on the poll ballot.

“This means that realistically, a maximum of 500,000 people may have ‘voted’ on paper… the Prime Minister’s Office revealed… that the number of online submissions was negligible compared to the paper-based ones,” Magyar said.

“This aligns with information received from government sources — indicating that despite the propaganda lies, the total number of ‘voters’ could be at most 600,000,” he added.

Despite the government’s resistance, polling shows public support for Ukraine’s accession to the bloc. According to Magyar’s opposition party, Tisza’s “Voice of the Nation” initiative, which received over 1.1 million responses, 58.18% of participants supported Ukraine’s EU bid.

Magyar’s claim that the national poll garnered around 600,000 responses would mean that the opposition party’s own polling received more responses than the government poll.

“This is the lowest number in the ‘glorious’ history of (national consultations). And this was only achieved over several months, with total mobilization and the burning of tens of billions in public funds. A total failure,” Magyar said.

Hungarian officials have repeatedly threatened to undermine Ukraine’s EU candidacy and EU support for Ukraine. Hungary has repeatedly blocked or delayed EU aid packages for Kyiv.

“(T)he failed, corrupt regime doesn’t care about people’s real problems, and doesn’t dare to look people in the eye. They only send them letters,” Magyar said.

Comrades, be proud of lying about two million pen pals, funded by 10 billion forints ($29 million) in state propaganda,” he added, addressing Hungary’s ruling government.

European officials have denounced Hungary for aligning with Russia. European officials, including Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, have suggested stripping Hungary of its voting power within the bloc.

Hungary maintains positive relations with Russia in contrast with other EU members. On March 26, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto visited Moscow to discuss continued economic cooperation between the two countries.