Hungary rejects membership of Ukraine's Carpathian Eight forum

Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar said Hungary is not a member of the Carpathian Eight regional initiative launched by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, rejecting Kyiv's presentation of the country as one of eight founding members. Zelenskyy announced the C8 at its inaugural summit in Ukraine's Ivano-Frankivsk region on September 18, describing a cooperation format linking Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Czechia, Austria and Serbia around security, energy, logistics, investment and cross-border development. Ukrainian officials listed Hungary among the member countries. Speaking in parliament on September 21, Magyar said Budapest had received an invitation but declined to join. "We were invited, and for good reason we did not go," he said, adding that no sovereign country can be declared a member of an international format without its consent. The Hungarian Foreign Ministry said chargé d'affaires Ádám Ceglédi attended the summit but that his presence did not amount to membership, and that Hungary did not sign the summit declaration. Czechia also did not sign; the document was endorsed by Ukraine, Austria, Romania, Poland, Serbia and Slovakia.