Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó had talks with Ministers from the Western Balkans countries on Saturday in Riga on the occasion of the China-Eastern-Central-Europe summit.
The Minister told the Hungarian news agency MTI: he agreed with Mirko Sarovic, Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina to put an end to the untenable situation that there is at present no public transport service between Budapest and Sarajevo, and neither is there a direct motorway link.
They will therefore jointly seek action with Croatia in the interest of the implementation of the projects that are necessary for a direct motorway link between Budapest and Sarajevo.
He added: the Hungarian and the Bosnian railway companies are ready to launch a direct railway service between the two capitals, and as of the beginning of next year, there will be a direct air service between Budapest and Sarajevo of which the parties expect a major improvement in bilateral economic relations.
Mr Szijjártó also told MTI that he had talks with Albanian Minister of Economy Milva Ekonomi. There is scope for the reinforcement of bilateral economic cooperation primarily in the field of energy: there will be major energy developments in Albania in the next few years as the energy pipelines coming from the easterly direction will traverse the country, he explained. He added: Hungarian businesses are welcomed in Albania in the context of these projects.
He remarked: they will sign a bilateral air transport agreement at the end of November which the parties have just finalised, and as a result, there may be a direct air service between Budapest and Tirana as of the beginning of next year.
The Minister also met with Macedonian Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki. As he said, there is an election campaign in the country at present. Hungary is a committed supporter of Macedonia’s European integration aspirations, supports the Macedonian Government in its accession efforts, and should the government currently in office win the elections, this cooperation will be maintained under any circumstances.
Mr Szijjártó further had talks with Radek Pyffel, Alternate Director of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). He pointed out: the Hungarian Government has submitted a letter of intent regarding the country’s accession to the organisation, and the leadership of the Bank reassured him that they look upon Hungary’s plans to join the Bank in a positive light. They are pleased that one of the most important supporters of cooperation between China and Central-Europe will join the Bank, he said.