# Hungary–Kosovo relations

The Hungary–Kosovo relations are foreign relations between Hungary and Kosovo. Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008 and Hungary recognized it on 19 March 2008. Hungary has an embassy in Pristina.Hungary was one of the first EU countries to officially recognize Kosovo’s independence after it declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Hungary recognized Kosovo’s sovereignty in 2008. This move positioned Hungary as one of the first EU countries to recognize Kosovo. In Hungary’s view Kosovo had the right to break away from Serbia after all of the tensions and establish itself as a sovereign nation. Hungary voted for Kosovo's entry into UNESCO, although the majority of members rejected Kosovo's request. Kosovo and Hungary have a close cooperation in the field of civil aviation and education, where for several years now, every year, scholarships have been awarded to students from Kosovo who study at Hungarian universities. Hungary, having been part of a region with its own history of national struggles, saw the recognition as a moral and diplomatic choice which was on Kosovo’s good and since then these two nations have good relations with one and other. This also mean that Hungary supports Kosovo in different ways, like Diplomatic Recognition, Advocacy in the EU, Support for Visa Liberalization, and also economics. The reason that it supports is because of Principles of Self-Determination and also Geopolitical and Strategic Interests. However, Hungary’s recognition didn’t come without complications. While Hungary had a strong belief in Kosovo’s right to independence, it was also aware that Kosovo’s recognition was controversial, particularly in the context of EU politics.

## History

Despite Hungary's recognition of Kosovo's independence, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary Péter Szijjártó stated in January 2023 that Hungary would vote against Kosovo's accession to European organizations until a deal was reached with Serbia. In April 2023, Hungary along with Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cyprus, Georgia, Romania, Serbia and Spain voted against approving Kosovo's membership in the Council of Europe.

## Kosovo's influence on the Hungarian-Serbian relations

Hungary’s relationship with Serbia it is shaped by the issue of Kosovo’s independence. While Hungary has supported Kosovo's sovereignty since the beginning, Serbia didn’t, creating tension between the two countries. Despite this, Hungary has worked to maintain strong diplomatic and economic relations with Serbia, focusing on cooperation in areas like trade, energy, and security which both can benefit. Serbia, meanwhile, is also looking for EU membership, and Hungary plays a role in supporting Serbia's European integration. However, Hungary also recognizes that Kosovo’s issue must be resolved in some way for both Kosovo and Serbia to move forward in their EU aspirations. Kosovo plays a very big role in Serbia-Hungary relations, Hungary’s support for Kosovo does create diplomatic challenges with Serbia, but Hungary works to manage these differences.

## Military

Hungary currently has 353 troops serving in Kosovo as peacekeepers in the NATO-led Kosovo Force.

## From political cooperation towards economics

As it is known, economic diplomacy is a driving force of relations between all of the states not only Hungary and Kosovo. Slowly but surely, the relations of Hungary and Kosovo started to pave the path in the economic direction, as well. One of the highest activities that marked an advancement of bilateral relations from a political dimension was the organization of the Economic Forum under the Prime Minister of Kosovo at the time, Hashim Thaci, as a part of Kosovo’s Government for investment promotion.The Economic Forum took place in Hungary- Budapest with the presence of the Hungarian Prime Minister at that time, Orbán Viktor. The key objective of this Forum was to promote investments in Kosovo and to boost economic and trade cooperation between Kosovo and Hungary. This event was one Kosovo’s benefits.