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The President of Hungary traveled to Romania, where on Wednesday she met, among others, her Romanian counterpart, President Klaus Iohannis. At the joint press conference, Katalin Novák said that “our goal and our task is to strengthen the voice of the European Union and increase its influence,” adding that the two countries are ready to work together to this end.
The Hungarian President said that the meeting with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis had focused on Romania’s accession to the Schengen area, energy issues and dependence, the situation of Hungarians living in Romania, and assistance for refugees from the war in Ukraine. She stressed her confidence in the pragmatic, good, and modern relations between Romania and Hungary.
Katalin Novák recalled that it had been 12 years since a Hungarian head of state had officially visited Bucharest, so her visit would open a new chapter in the cooperation between the two countries.
She added that as Hungary and Romania are neighboring countries, it is necessary to have good relations and they will work towards this in the future. They also agreed that they want to reduce, not increase, existing tensions.
On energy dependency, Novák said that in the future Hungary wants to reduce its energy dependency, and wants to achieve energy sovereignty. The President also said that it was in the common interest to reach an agreement between Hungary and the European Union on the funds Hungary is entitled to, and on extending this to Poland.
Speaking about Hungarians living in Romania, the Hungarian President said that
…it is in the common interest to protect the rights of the Hungarian minority, and it is gratifying to see that the highest level of representation of the Hungarian minority in Transylvania is ensured through the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania’s membership of the Romanian government.”
As part of her official program, Novák visited the Calvineum, the First Reformed Parish of Bucharest, and held bilateral meetings with Alina Gorghiu, President of the Senate, Marcel Ciolacu, President of the Chamber of Deputies, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca, and Deputy Prime Minister Hunor Kelemen.
Speaking about the Hungarian President’s visit, Hunor Kelemen said that Wednesday’s meeting between the Hungarian and Romanian Presidents, the fact that the two heads of state had held official talks in Bucharest after 12 years could open up new space and new opportunities in Hungarian-Romanian relations.
“A dialogue has started, because, indeed, Romanian-Hungarian relations seemed to be frozen and one of the important aspects was to break the deadlock. This is a strong step forward, because the two heads of state met officially at the highest level. I think it is important because it can give a new impetus, open new doors, create new opportunities, and restore some trust, because without trust it is difficult to cooperate,” said Kelemen, Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania.
Featured photo: MTI/Bruzák Noémi
