“The EU and NATO integration of the Western Balkans could guarantee truly long-term peace and stability in the region”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó declared on Friday in Budapest following a meeting with his Montenegrin counterpart.
“We are running a race against time, because tensions in the region have increased in recent years and there is a continuous threat of migration from the south. If the two are combined then they could lead to more destabilisation, and it is in the interests of Hungary and Europe to prevent this”, he argued.
“Montenegro is proof that integration processes are a guarantor of stability, because the country’s NATO accession process represented a guarantee that we can now count on Montenegro as a stable partner in the region”, Mr. Szijjártó said.
“Hungary is doing its utmost to accelerate integration and has acted as NATO contact point ambassador to Montenegro since 2010, in addition to which Hungarian experts are helping to accelerate the accession process”, he stressed, adding that “A Hungarian diplomat will be serving in the Montenegrin Foreign Ministry again this year, to assist with his experience”.
The Foreign Minister said he hoped that those NATO member states who had not yet done so would also soon ratify Montenegro’s accession agreement. “In addition, accelerating the country’s EU accession process is also important; at least one Chapter should be concluded at this year’s negotiations”, he pointed out.
Mr. Szijjártó also said that Hungary will rush to the aid of Montenegro if it is put under heavy migration pressure. Hungary is the fourth largest investor in Montenegro and Eximbank had opened an 85 million euro credit line to facilitate cooperation between the two countries’ enterprises, he told reporters.
Mr. Szijjártó also pointed out that Hungary is providing 30 scholarship places for Montenegrin students to attend Hungarian universities, and that it would seem that these scholarship programmes are successful because almost every single one of the scholarship places on offer is being filled.
“A direct air passenger route between Budapest and Podgorica will be launched in April, and this represents a major opportunity for progress in forging links between the two countries”, the Foreign Minister said.
Montenegrin Foreign Minister Srdjan Darmanovic stressed: “Joining NATO and the EU are the most important strategic goals of the country’s foreign policy since Montenegro gained independence”.
“Hungary has played a major role in the progress Montenegro has achieved so far and has been supporting Montenegro for some time”, he told reporters.
Mr. Darmanovic said that in his opinion his country’s accession to NATO would guarantee not only the stability of Montenegro, but that of the whole Western Balkan region, in addition to which Montenegro would also like to join the European Union at the earliest opportunity.
The Montenegrin Foreign Minister also expressed his condolences with relation to last week’s bus tragedy near Verona, Italy.
In reply to a question, Mr. Szijjártó said that US President Donald Trump’s comments on NATO were being misinterpreted, because what Mr. Trump actually said was that the Alliance must be more effective in the fight against terrorism. “NATO should indeed place much greater emphasis on terrorism and the fight against the Islamic State terrorist organisation”, the Hungarian Foreign Minister said.
Prior to the press conference, the two Foreign Ministers concluded an agreement on cooperation between their two governments within the fields of education, culture, sports and youth affairs.