Leaders of the Carpathian Basin’s Hungarian Minority Meet in Croatia

The 3rd Carpathian Basin National Policy Roundtable was held on Saturday in Croatia under the title “After the elections, ahead of challenges,” with the participation of the leaders of all Hungarian parties abroad.

“It is important to think in a united way on almost all issues that affect Hungarians,” Árpád János Potápi, State Secretary for National Policy of the Prime Minister’s Office, said at the event in Rijeka. “The aim of these meetings is to show people that we not only express ourselves in politics and sit side by side in various forums, but also cultivate friendly relations with each other, and that we do indeed look out for each other and express ourselves as friends,” the State Secretary said.

He pointed out that

at such a roundtable they could speak more openly and learn from each other’s successes and mistakes to help colleagues in areas where there is not as much cooperation and which they see as being at a disadvantage.

Róbert Jankovics, President of the Democratic Union of Hungarians of Croatia (HMDK), said that they had hosted an extremely important national policy roundtable discussion for the third time.

He stressed that

the primary task of the Fiume forum was to provide a concise overview of current national policy priorities between the heads of the State Secretariat for National Policy and the leaders of Hungarian parties abroad, and to analyze the serious political challenges of the coming period and discuss possible joint action.

The participants adopted a joint declaration at the event. They agreed that only a peaceful end to the Russian-Ukrainian war can guarantee the security and long-term development of the region,

and expressed their concern about the series of difficulties faced by the Hungarian community in Transcarpathia as a result of the war.

The signatories expressed their hope that the rights of the Hungarian community in Transcarpathia will be fully restored as a condition for Ukraine’s accession to the EU.

The participants of the Forum welcomed the results of the EP elections, “which show that it is important for Hungarian communities to make their voices heard at the European level,” and the electoral results that have enabled Hungarian parties in the Carpathian Basin to maintain their positions at the national, regional and local levels over the past year.

They were also confident that Hungarians in Transylvania would show their strength in the presidential elections in Romania in September and in the parliamentary elections in December.

“Hungarian communities abroad can only survive if they have strong Hungarian representation, which can be maintained and further strengthened through the broad-based unity of Hungarians,” the participants wrote in the declaration.

The forum was attended by the leaders of Hungarian parties from across the border: Hunor Kelemen, President of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ), Bálint Pásztor, President of the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians (VMSZ), László Brenzovics, President of the Transcarpathian Hungarian Cultural Association (KMKSZ), Krisztián Forró, President of the Hungarian Alliance (in Slovakia), Róbert Jankovics, President of the HMDK and Dusan Orban, President of the Hungarian Self-Governing Ethnic Community of Pomurje (MMÖNK). Also the staff of the State Secretariat for National Policy who are in daily contact with these leaders.

Via MTI, Featured image: Facebook/Potápi Árpád János