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Slovak Parliament Speaker Peter Ziga has confirmed that a possible new language law will not in any way restrict the use of the mother tongue of national minorities living in the country, Hungary’s Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in Bratislava on Monday. The meeting between the two politicians was held in the framework of the Hungarian EU Presidency in Bratislava Castle.
“Today, I received clear confirmation from the President that the possible new language legislation will in no way endanger the use of the mother tongue for national minorities living in Slovakia,” he said after talks with Peter Ziga.
Today’s words from the President serve as a guarantee for me,”
he added.
The minister also noted that they had agreed to maintain constant contact during the possible legislative process. “Therefore, if any of us perceives any problem that creates an undesirable situation, we will talk immediately and we will take immediate joint action,” he stressed.
Mr. Szijjártó said that cooperation between Hungary and Slovakia is more successful now than ever before. According to him, this is also evidenced by the fact that cooperation is closest in the most sensitive areas, as the two countries also contribute to each other’s physical and energy security. He cited the contribution of the Hungarian Air Force to Slovak air policing and the close cooperation in the field of oil transport as examples of this.
The politician touched on the fact that there is greater hope than ever for a return to peace in Central Europe. “We Hungarians, together with the Slovak government, were and are proud to be part of the global pro-peace majority that sees the solution to the war in Ukraine not in arms transfers but rather in a ceasefire,” he underlined.
Speaking at the joint press conference, Peter Ziga said that the details of the new language law were not yet known and that the text was being prepared.
The inter-ministerial consultation will only start after finalization, then the government and the parliament will have to approve it, leaving plenty of time to discuss any concerns,
he pointed out.
The Slovak government has no interest in changing the status quo on national minorities,”
Mr. Ziga emphasized. On the contrary, he added, the Slovak government wants to put further emphasis on the infrastructural development of the southern part of the country, also inhabited by the Hungarian minority.
However, Prime Minister Robert Fico’s recent proposal for raising the parliamentary threshold from 5 percent to 7 percent would negatively impact the chances of the Hungarian Alliance, the largest party of the Hungarian minority in Slovakia. They are currently lingering between four to five percent with reasonably good chances of becoming a parliamentary party at the next elections.
Via MTI, Featured image: Facebook/Szijjártó Péter
