President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Viktor Orban have agreed to open the first Ukrainian school in Hungary, Ukrinform reports.
"Today, Prime Minister Orban and I discussed all the most fundamental issues of our neighbourly relations: trade, cross-border cooperation, energy issues, we talked today about the humanitarian sphere, everything that concerns the lives of our people in Ukraine and Hungary. In particular, we discussed the opening of the first Ukrainian school in Hungary. Mr Prime Minister assured me of his support for this project. Thank you, Viktor," Zelenskyy said in a statement to the media.
"I was very pleased to hear about President Zelenskyy's initiative to open a Ukrainian school in Hungary... We understand that you want to have a school with Ukrainian as the language of instruction. The Hungarian state will finance this school. It will work. And there will be as many schools as needed," Orban said at a press conference with the President of Ukraine in Kyiv on Tuesday, Interfax-Ukraine reports.
According to Orban, "Ukrainian children are now studying in many Hungarian schools, and many Hungarian teachers are teaching Ukrainian children."
"We have received information from Ukrainians temporarily residing in Hungary that they like it. It seems to me that they work well... It is very important for us that Ukrainians living in Hungary feel at home," he said.
"Many refugees have come from Ukraine to our country. Many of them have lived here before. People wanted to take refuge with us, and this raised a number of issues. But we have to take care of them. They should have the opportunity to work, live in safety and provide a proper school for their children with teachers," Orban added.
At the same time, according to the Hungarian prime minister, there is a traditional Hungarian national minority in Ukraine. "We hope that issues will be resolved here as well, and I see good chances for this," he stressed.
