Ukraine's parliament adopts minority-education amendments, clearing Hungary's veto on two EU accession clusters
On 12 October 2026, Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada adopted draft law No. 16119 on education in the languages of national minorities and indigenous peoples, fulfilling Hungary's condition for opening EU accession negotiation clusters 2 and 3. The vote was 273 in favour at first reading and 266 in the final vote. EU Coreper was prepared the same day to approve the EU's negotiating positions, with an intergovernmental conference planned for 13 October to formally open clusters 2 ("Internal Market") and 3 ("Competitiveness and Inclusive Growth").
Key points
- Verkhovna Rada adopted draft law No. 16119 on 12 October: 273 votes in favour at first reading, 266 in the final vote.
- Law guarantees education in native language for national minorities and indigenous peoples whose languages are official EU languages; Russian is not covered; Ukrainian remains the state language of the educational process.
- Schools where more than 50% of pupils study in a minority language can receive national-minority institution status.
- EU Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper) was ready on 12 October to approve the EU's negotiating positions on clusters 2 and 3 after the Rada's vote.
- Intergovernmental conference Ukraine–EU is planned for 13 October to formally open Cluster 2 "Internal Market" and Cluster 3 "Competitiveness and Inclusive Growth".
- Bill authors include Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk, his deputies Oleksandr Kornienko and Olena Kondratiuk, and MPs Serhiy Babak and Mykyta Poturayev.
Why it matters
The law lifts Hungary's months-long veto on two of six EU accession negotiation clusters — the key obstacle that had stalled Ukraine's EU integration track since the opening of the first cluster "Fundamentals" in June. With the vote secured, Coreper was ready the same day to approve the EU's negotiating positions and a Ukraine–EU intergovernmental conference was planned for 13 October to formally open clusters 2 ("Internal Market") and 3 ("Competitiveness and Inclusive Growth"). The legislation also delivers substantive policy change: it expands the right to education in minority languages for communities whose languages are official EU languages, while keeping Ukrainian as the language of the educational process and excluding Russian from the new rules.
What happened
On Monday 12 October 2026, the Verkhovna Rada adopted draft law No. 16119 on education in the languages of national minorities and indigenous peoples of Ukraine. The bill received 273 votes in favour at first reading (in principle) and 266 in the final vote (as a whole). It was immediately ordered to be signed by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada and sent to President Volodymyr Zelensky for signature.
The law guarantees children from national minorities and indigenous peoples whose languages are official EU languages the right to receive education in their native language alongside the state language. Russian is not included in the list of covered languages. Schools where more than 50% of pupils study in a minority language can receive the status of a national-minority institution. Other provisions protect national-minority schools from closure or reorganization without coordination with the Ministry of Education, allow parents to request more subjects in Ukrainian with the written support of two-thirds of class parents, and grant parents the right to duplicates of education documents in minority languages.
The same day, the EU Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper) was prepared to approve the EU's negotiating positions on opening clusters 2 and 3 with Ukraine. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha held talks with Hungarian Foreign Minister Anita Orbán in Luxembourg ahead of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, and said he expects the EU to formally open both clusters at the Ukraine–EU intergovernmental conference planned for 13 October. EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos welcomed the vote and said clusters should be opened on 13 October.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian media frame the adoption of the law as a major milestone on the European integration path, emphasising the vote tallies, the speed at which the bill moved through parliament, and the diplomatic coordination between Sybiha and Orbán. They stress that Ukrainian remains the language of the educational process and that Russian is excluded from the new rules, presenting the compromise as weighted toward Hungary's demands. Coverage also highlights Sybiha's framing of the broader context — Russia's attacks on Ukrainian cities, the agenda of the upcoming European Council, and pushing the aggressor toward peace negotiations — and amplifies European Commissioner Marta Kos's characterisation of Ukraine's reform progress as "impressive" despite the war.
Background
Ukraine formally started EU accession negotiations in June 2024. The negotiations cover 35 chapters grouped into six thematic clusters. On 15 June, the first cluster, "Fundamentals," covering the rule of law, democratic institutions and public administration reform, was opened; the "External Relations" cluster was also subsequently opened. Hungary then blocked progress on clusters 2 and 3 for several months, citing the need for stronger guarantees of educational rights for the Hungarian minority in Ukraine. In spring 2025 Ukraine and Hungary agreed to hold regular consultations on national-minority issues; a bilateral arrangement on the education law was reportedly coordinated in May–June, and on 7 October Hungary ended its months-long blockade. Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar had earlier said Ukraine had committed to implementing measures providing "significantly broader" educational, cultural, linguistic and political rights for Hungarians in Zakarpattia.