Within a few years this industry will account for a visible share of the country's GDP.Continue reading
“NATO is made up of national armed forces, therefore every member state needs to develop its army. Hungary, committed to NATO membership, is doing so,” stressed the Defense Minister in Brussels on Thursday, following a meeting of defense ministers of the member states.
Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky said that an increasing number of member states are planning to meet NATO’s requirement to spend at least two percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense. The minister pointed out that
Hungary has been meeting this requirement since 2023.
As he noted, this has not only earned it the recognition of the defense alliance, but also guarantees that the government is committed to ensuring the security of the Hungarian people and to meeting NATO’s requirement.
He stressed that the recent meeting in Brussels has once again highlighted the need for member states to invest significantly more in their security: “This is not a painless process, but to ensure the necessary capabilities it is essential that all member states deliver on the renewed commitment to invest in defense, made at last year’s NATO summit in Vilnius, and spend at least two percent of their domestic GDP on defense as soon as possible.”
A key task of the ministerial meeting was to review and prepare defense issues for the July meeting of heads of state and government in Washington, which will also mark the 75th anniversary of NATO. Among these, the finalization of plans to further enhance the strength and effectiveness of the Allies’ collective defense is a key priority, the minister explained.
The need to expand defense industrial capacities was also highlighted at the meeting, in which Hungary is also at the forefront, having already started to build up its defense industrial base prior to the war in Ukraine,”
he said.
He underlined that it is of the utmost importance for Hungary to fulfil the commitments it has made within NATO, whether in terms of capability development, operational contributions, or financial obligations. “We must continue the modernization of the Hungarian Defense Forces, and as a member state on the eastern flank of the alliance, we must play a significant role in strengthening NATO’s defense capabilities,” he noted.
@NATO meetings are always a good opportunity to engage in constructive dialogue with my fellow ministers:
Pål Johnson | @YasarGulermsb | @SebLecornu#NATO #Defense #Cooperation#StrongerTogether #WeAreNATO pic.twitter.com/UXZUufF1Mu— Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky (@SzBobrovniczky) February 15, 2024
He added that
Hungary will give priority to the further strengthening of NATO’s Headquarters Multinational Division Center in Székesfehérvár, in partnership with the other two framework nations, Croatia and Slovakia.”
The minister also said that at the NATO-Ukraine Council meeting held on Thursday, the Ukrainian Defense Minister briefed the Council on the situation in Ukraine, and in this context the Allies reviewed the support provided to Ukraine. The overwhelming majority of member states continue to urge the continuation of the fighting and arms deliveries, he said. In this context, he also pointed out that Hungary’s position remains unchanged: “It will not supply arms and insists that only a ceasefire and peace talks as soon as possible can end the war.”
Via MTI, Featured image: MTI/Bodnár Boglárka