Hungary’s Our Homeland to lay claim on western region if Ukraine loses state

Hungary’s far-right Our Homeland party would lay claim to a western region of Ukraine that is home to about 150,000 ethnic Hungarians if Ukraine loses its statehood due to Russia’s invasion.

Our Homeland leader Laszlo Toroczkai made the remarks at a conference where the party, which has six lawmakers in the 199-strong Hungarian parliament, hosted far-right leaders from Germany’s AfD and the Dutch Forum for Democracy.

“Regarding the war in Ukraine, our message is very simple: immediate ceasefire, peace and a resolution through talks,” Toroczkai said in a video posted on his party’s website, calling for autonomy for ethnic Hungarians in western Ukraine.

“If this war ends up with Ukraine losing its statehood, because this is also on the cards, then as the only Hungarian party taking this position, let me signal that we lay claim to Transcarpathia,” he said, Reuters reported.

The Hungarian Foreign Ministry and the Ukrainian Embassy in Budapest did not immediately respond to emailed questions for comment about Torockzai’s remarks.

In a December interview on public radio, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban expressed support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.