Relations between Slovakia and Hungary could deteriorate due to a new Slovak law that restricts the use of minority languages, including Hungarian. This was reported by Politico.
The new bill will ban the use of minority languages on public transport, post offices and restaurant menus, and will also increase fines for non-compliance with the law by 20 times, up to 15,000 euros.
The Slovak opposition said the law would harm tourism, reduce Slovakia’s competitiveness and draw criticism from the EU.
Politico notes that in 2009 Slovakia already passed a similar amendment prohibiting government employees from using the language of national minorities. This then caused a diplomatic dispute with Hungary.
