U.S. urges Hungary not to block Ukraine's NATO engagement

FILE PHOTO - A NATO flag flies at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels during a NATO ambassadors meeting on the situation in Ukraine and the Crimea region, March 2, 2014. REUTERS/Yves Herman

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - The United States urged Hungary on Thursday to repair relations with neighbouring Ukraine and not try to block Kiev's cooperation with NATO, saying "if Ukraine fails, Hungary will be on the front line of Russian aggression".

Hungary accuses Ukraine of trampling over the educational rights of its ethnic Hungarian minority. Budapest has threatened to retaliate by blocking Kiev's efforts to move closer to NATO and the European Union, clubs Hungary belongs to.