“Cultural and scientific diplomacy is an important competitive factor and played an important role in 2015 having been the most successful year in the history of Hungarian foreign trade”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó highlighted on Wednesday in Budapest at a meeting of the Directors on foreign Hungarian institutes at the Balassi Institute.
“The results prove that integrating cultural and scientific diplomacy into the system of foreign affairs and trade institutes established in 2014 was an important step”, Mr. Szijjártó said, adding that “Last year’s foreign trade performance broke all previous records with regard to both foreign trade surplus and foreign investment”.
“The further afield we go in the world, the more important the role of culture with regard to the development of Hungary’s image”, he said.
“Culture plays an important role in preserving the strength of the nation, in maintaining and reinforcing ties and relations between nations, and in resolving conflicts”, the Minister said, according to whom we are currently experiencing major global and regional tensions. “Europe has ‘gone all topsy-turvy’, but Hungary is now the most stable country on the continent”, he highlighted.
“Hungarian cultural and scientific diplomacy aims to develop brands that portray Hungary’s roots and national history, and which at the same time make it clear that we are more than capable of fulfilling the requirements of the modern age”, the Minister said, praising with relation to this the Hungarian Culture Days held in Russia and the series of programmes of the Polish Hungarian Cultural Season.
Mr. Szijjártó also spoke about the fact that he had put forward a proposal to fund foreign performances by pianist and composer Balázs Havasi and the Budapest Festival Orchestra. The latter will not have to cancel any foreign appearances as a result.
With regard to the restructuring of the Foreign Ministry’s system of background institutions, Mr. Szijjártó told reporters that the Ballasi Institute would continue to operate as part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade under the supervision of the State Secretariat for Cultural and Scientific Diplomacy, with no reduction in staff expected.
The Hungarian Institute opened in Ljubljana this year is the 24th of its kind worldwide, with plans in progress for the appointment of institute directors in Sepsiszentgyörgy (Sfântu Gheorghe) and Moscow. New institute directors will be appointed in Helsinki, Rome and Prague during the course of 2016, in addition to which new cultural and scientific attachés will be appointed to Belgrade, Moscow and Paris, Mr. Szijjártó announced.