The mayors of 11 Hungarian cities and Budapest districts have pledged to help their Ukrainian twin cities prepare for winter. They include Budapest mayor Gergely Karácsony and Krisztina Baranyi, mayor of Ferencváros, a twin town of Bucha.

This is stated in a statement published by Budapest City Hall.

The statement is dated 18 October and marks the 70th anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, which was crushed by the Soviet army. The mayors compare the Hungarians’ fight for independence then with Ukraine’s war against russia today.

Seventy years ago we waited for help from the world. Today it is our turn to lend a helping hand.

Statement by Hungarian mayors18 October 2026

The signatories pledge to help their Ukrainian twin cities by all means available to them, with particular attention to preparing for winter and the most urgent humanitarian needs. Attacks on energy, heating, water and power supplies hit civilians hardest, they stress.

The statement does not name specific amounts or types of aid. The mayors called on other Hungarian municipalities that have or want to establish Ukrainian twin cities to join in: to contact their partners, assess their needs and mobilise residents, institutions, civil society groups and businesses.

How Ferencváros has helped Bucha

Ferencváros, the 9th district of the Hungarian capital, became Bucha’s twin town in December 2022. At that time Bucha mayor Anatolii Fedoruk visited Budapest at Krisztina Baranyi’s invitation, the Hungarian outlet HVG reported. In May 2023 Baranyi came to Bucha and signed a cooperation agreement.

That summer Budapest hosted 20 children from Bucha on holiday, and Ferencváros gave the community two cleaning machines. In February 2025 Baranyi wrote that children from the district’s twin towns spend every summer at Lake Balaton, those from Bucha for two years in a row.

Bucha City Council thanked its Hungarian partners for their solidarity. According to the council, both Karácsony and Baranyi have visited Bucha on humanitarian missions several times.

As a reminder, Ferencváros is one of the twin towns Bucha has gained over the years of independence.

Nota bene

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