DISINFO: Ukraine will give Hungary part of Transcarpathia
SUMMARY
Ukraine will give Hungary part of its territory. The Ministry of Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine has published new projects for dividing the country’s regions and one of the main sensations is the creation of a separate Hungarian region of Berehove in Transcarpathia.
RESPONSE
As part of the continuation of the decentralisation reform, the Ministry of Regional Development announced projects that will renew regions in Ukraine, including Transcarpathia, and they plan to include the Vynohradiv region in the Berehove region. An updated map of Transcarpathia, presented at the ministry, shows the unification of the Berehove and Vinohradiv regions, with the centre in Berehove. This is not the creation of a “Hungarian” region that will be "surrendered to Hungary”, but instead the unification of two small regions into one, as part of the government's decentralisation reform. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmitro Kuleba said the information that Ukraine is creating the Berehove district in the Transcarpathian region for the interests of Hungary is fake, saying: "No foreign country has the right to dictate to Ukraine how to organise communities, districts or regions. The Berehove region has existed happily for a long time and has the right to extend its existence. Now we are only talking about joining the Vinohradiv region within the reform. The decision to join the regions was not made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Administrative-territorial reform is not a question of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs." The decentralisation process in Ukraine began in 2014. The reform provides for the transfer of powers and budgets from state bodies to local governments.