Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
The approval marks a key step in international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for what is considered the gravest violation of international law committed against Ukraine.
Although Moscow declared on April 28 that it would halt all military actions from May 8 to midnight on May 11 to mark Victory Day, strikes on civilian areas have continued.
Under Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin's rule, millions of Ukrainians died during the Holodomor, a man-made famine in 1932–1933. The dictator also oversaw mass deportations, purges of Ukrainian intellectuals and leaders, and the suppression of the Ukrainian language and culture.
According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), this marks the first time Ukrainian authorities have exposed a Hungarian military intelligence network conducting activities harmful to Ukraine.
Delegations from 35 countries and the Council of Europe gathered in Lviv as EU officials prepare to approve both new defense aid and steps toward establishing a tribunal for Russian leadership.
The ruling marks a significant victory for RFE/RL amid growing concerns about U.S. funding cuts to independent media countering Russian disinformation.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
Freshly dug graves for unidentified civilians killed by the Russian military in the Bucha massacre in February-March 2022, at the city cemetery in Bucha, Kyiv Oblast. (Oleksandra Butova/ Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Russia's suspected violations in Ukraine include 142 summary executions of Ukrainian civilians in occupied territories by Russian troops since the start of the full-scale invasion, UN human rights chief Volker Turk said on Dec. 19.
The numbers that the UN regularly provides on casualties of Russia's war against Ukraine include only cases that could be safely verified, and actual figures are most likely higher.
Turk noted that his team's monitoring in Ukraine "continues to indicate gross violations of international human rights law, serious violations of international humanitarian law, and war crimes," primarily by Russian forces.
"On occupied territory, we have documented widespread torture and ill-treatment of detainees, including sexual violence, as well as large numbers of enforced disappearances," the UN official said at a meeting of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
The UN said in November that at least 10,000 civilians had been confirmed as killed, and over 18,500 had been injured as a result of Russia's all-out war against Ukraine.
In Bucha alone, 461 civilians were killed by Russia, according to the fundraising initiative UNITED24.
The death toll of civilians in occupied territories is impossible to establish with certainty. While the UN confirmed the death of 1,348 civilians in the brutal siege of Mariupol, the organization noted the real figure was "likely thousands higher."
According to Prosecutor General Andrii Kostin, Ukraine has collected evidence of 109,000 Russian war crimes as of Nov. 18.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
