Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar said Tuesday he is optimistic about reaching an agreement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the rights of Ukraine’s Hungarian minority — a deal that could help end Budapest’s opposition to Kyiv’s EU membership bid.

Axar.az reports, citing Politico, “I am ready for us to open a new chapter in Ukrainian-Hungarian relations,” Magyar said during a press conference in Berlin.

“I am ready to negotiate with Ukrainian President Zelensky early next week,” he added, speaking alongside German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, a proponent of Ukraine’s EU membership bid.

The issue of the rights of ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine has long been a flashpoint in Kyiv’s EU membership drive, with former Prime Minister Viktor Orban citing the matter as a key reason for Budapest’s opposition to the Ukrainian bid. Since Magyar’s inauguration in May, the two countries have started technical talks to break the deadlock.