Cooperation between Hungary and Germany will be strengthened in research and innovation, László Palkovics, the minister in charge of innovation and technology, said on Wednesday after talks with Federal Minister of Education and Research Anja Karliczek.
Palkovics told the public media that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán had agreed with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to raise the level of cooperation in this field during a visit to Berlin last summer.
A working team will be set up to “very quickly” draft detailed plans, such as supporting cooperation between institutions, coordinating research and innovation strategies, and the possibility of jointly operating large infrastructures, he said.
Concerning the Central European University (CEU), another issue on the agenda, Palkovics confirmed that Hungary’s government supports a proposal by Manfred Weber from the Christian Social Union to involve carmaker BMW and the Technical University of Munich in education cooperation. The proposal “meets the applicable legal conditions but details still need to be clarified by those involved,” he added.
CEU Welcomes Weber’s Help, Wants Legal Assurances from PM Orbán
Concerning changes affecting the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Palkovics told Karliczek that Hungary wants to develop a research institute network which is “structurally identical to the excellently functioning German network.” Karliczek acknowledged the information that “no bad intentions are involved and we would actually like to set up a much better functioning and more efficient network of research institutions,” he added.
On the featured photo: László Palkovics. Photo by Zsolt Szigetváry/MTI