Hungary demands protection of its national minority in exchange for opening EU negotiating clusters for Ukraine
Hungary is ready to agree to opening the next sets of EU accession negotiations with Ukraine if Kyiv demonstrates progress in protecting the rights of Hungary’s national minority in the country, European Pravda reported, citing its sources in the EU.
Budapest is demanding that Ukraine fulfill commitments related to the protection of the Hungarian minority before it agrees to unblock the opening of additional negotiating clusters.
Diplomatic sources in the Council of the EU told European Pravda that during discussions on opening clusters 2 and 3 for Ukraine and Moldova, Hungary’s representative said Budapest was prepared to move forward — but only if Ukraine takes concrete steps to implement a bilateral agreement on minority rights.
Until then, Hungary will not support progress on opening the new negotiating clusters, the sources said.
Kyiv is preparing to relocate 200,000 citizens in case of prolonged blackouts
Kyiv is preparing temporary accommodation for vulnerable residents in the event of prolonged winter blackouts, with more than 200,000 people included on potential relocation lists, Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne reported.
So far, around 2,000 residents have agreed to temporary relocation if extended outages of electricity and heating make it unsafe or impossible for them to remain at home. The lists primarily include people with limited mobility, people with disabilities and families raising children with disabilities.
Kyiv authorities stressed that relocation would be voluntary. Deputy Mayor Maryna Khonda said the city has changed its approach following last winter, assigning social workers to specific residential buildings so they can quickly contact vulnerable residents if a crisis develops.
The city is identifying facilities that could provide temporary shelter, including boarding houses, sanatoriums, hospitals and hotels. One center has already prepared 60 beds, with separate rooms for men, women and families. Residents would receive bed linens, personal hygiene products and three meals a day.
Kyiv is also working to expand accommodation for families with children. According to the Kyiv City State Administration, the capital is home to more than 16,000 children with disabilities, over 160,000 adults with disabilities and about 26,000 people who live alone — groups that may require additional assistance during prolonged outages.
Specialized vehicles are expected to be used to transport residents, with local Red Cross branches potentially assisting if necessary. However, authorities have not yet published a final list of facilities capable of accommodating everyone included on the relocation lists.
Kyiv and Odesa sustained the hardest damage in an overnight Russian attack, with 16 killed and 54 injured across Ukraine
At least 16 people were killed and 54 others injured in Russian attacks across Ukraine over the past day, according to local authorities.
The heaviest casualties were reported in Kyiv and the surrounding oblast, where Russia’s fifth consecutive day of attacks killed at least 12 people and injured 21 others. Six of those killed were Ukrainian Railways employees who died when a ballistic missile struck railway facilities.
“Russia always plans its strikes in a way designed to cause maximum destruction to people’s lives,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Odesa Oblast was also heavily targeted, with Ukraine’s Air Force identifying it and Kyiv Oblast as the main targets of the attack. Russian strikes damaged residential, energy and port infrastructure, injuring one person. Two residential buildings, a sewing workshop and the Orlivka international ferry crossing on the Romanian border were also damaged.
Later in the morning, another Russian strike caused a fire at a postal terminal that had already been damaged in an earlier attack. The blaze was extinguished, and no additional casualties were reported.
“Thousands of families were left without electricity, and work is underway to restore power as quickly as possible,” Zelensky said. He added that Russia had deliberately targeted a border crossing with Romania and export infrastructure.
Overall, Russia launched ballistic and cruise missiles and 218 drones, around one-third of them jet-powered, the Air Force said. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted or suppressed 199 aerial targets, including five ballistic missiles, five Kalibr cruise missiles, two S8000 Banderol missiles and 187 drones.
Russian missile and drone strikes were recorded at 28 locations, while debris from intercepted targets fell at 10 others. The attack was still ongoing when the Air Force released its figures at 8:32 a.m., and strike and jet-powered drones were still reported over Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv oblasts later in the day.
Ukraine intercepted all cruise missiles launched in the attack, as well as most of the drones and several ballistic and Banderol missiles, Air Force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said. He added that Ukraine still needs more air defense capabilities, particularly Patriot interceptors capable of destroying ballistic missiles.
Elsewhere, a Russian FPV drone struck a car in Kherson, killing one person. In Donetsk Oblast, one person was killed and nine others were injured. Six people, including a child, were injured in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, while five people were injured in Sumy Oblast.
In Zaporizhzhia Oblast, two people were killed and 12 injured. Four emergency workers were among the wounded after a Russian drone struck their vehicle as they responded to a fire in the village of Kushuhum.
Russia also attacked Zhytomyr and Chernihiv oblasts, causing fires at an industrial facility and a warehouse. No casualties were reported in those attacks.
“The number of victims of Russian terror directly depends on every new aid package,” Zelensky said, urging Ukraine’s partners to increase deliveries of anti-ballistic missiles.