Hungary’s Orbán says Ukraine is ‘light years away’ from joining the EU

By JUSTIN SPIKE
Associated Press

BUDAPEST, (AP) — Hungary’s prime minister has further signaled that his government is likely to present a roadblock to Ukraine’s ambitions to join the European Union. Speaking at a biannual congress of his nationalist political party on Saturday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that Ukraine is “light years away” from EU membership. He says he and his government will “resist” talks scheduled for mid-December on whether to invite the country to start accession negotiations. Admitting a new country requires unanimous approval from all existing member countries, giving Orbán a powerful veto. The Hungarian leader is one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s only EU allies. He has argued that membership talks should not begin with a country at war.