“Denmark is an important ally of Hungary in the European Union and NATO, and there are ‘no major disputes’ between the two states”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said at a press conference in Budapest following a meeting with his Danish counterpart.
“The goal of both states is to improve the EU’s competitiveness and restore Europe’s security”, Mr. Szijjártó stressed. “We agree on the fact that illegal migration and terrorism will be one of the major challenges of the upcoming period” for the European Union, and also with relation to the fact that the EU’S external borders must be protected and the problems that are giving rise to illegal immigration must be handled at their point of origin, the Minister said.
“It is clear that we agree and more issues than we disagree on”, the Hungarian Foreign Minister said, adding that in the case of disputed issues that are approached from different perspectives, “the related discussions have always remained within the framework of mutual respect” and at a level of civility that we refer to as a European context.
Mr. Szijjártó told his Danish colleague that Hungary in no way supports the mandatory resettlement quota, which represents an invitation to new arrivals, as well as reinforcing the business model of people smugglers.
“We stand on the side of our Polish friends, and naturally, if someone wants to introduce EU sanctions against Poland, we will veto it”, he added.
“The Schengen system is one of the most important European Union acquis, and if we succeed in protecting the community’s external borders then there will be no need for anyone to introduce border controls along any internal borders”, he highlighted, adding that both states “have an interest in a fair Brexit”.
“Denmark is one of Hungary’s important trade partners, with bilateral trade flow exceeding one billion euros last year and achieving a further increase of 8 percent during the first five months of this year; 150 Danish enterprises employ over ten thousand people in Hungary, and three of these companies are the Governments’ strategic partners”, Mr. Szijjártó emphasised.
In reply to a question on the Paks expansion, he told reporters that construction would begin in January of next year, something that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Russian President Vladimir Putin has “clearly confirmed” during their meeting in Budapest the day before.
Danish Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen spoke about the fact that the Schengen borders must be protected, and we must find solutions that curb illegal migration and people smuggling.
Mr. Samuelsen said it was important for the rules of law and order to be preserved and for previous treaties not to be undermined, while what is happening must be made transparent for the public. He also said it was important for every member state to insist on the upholding of fundamental EU principles.