In their meeting in Luxembourg on Monday, European Union foreign ministers agreed that immediate action is required on migration issues in the Mediterranean, but the problem cannot be solved until Libya has a functioning government with control over its own borders.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó declared that Libya cannot be a functioning state until Islamic State is contained and terrorists no longer use the country as a field of operations. The execution of 28 Ethiopian Christians is evidence that extremists can operate in the country without any restrictions.
Mr. Szijjártó said that the Hungarian government will examine the possibility of contacting families of the victims to help them with donations, just as Hungary supported the executed Egyptian Coptic Christians’ families.
With regard to the foreign ministers’ strategy talks on South America and the Caribbean region, Mr. Szijjártó said that the Hungarian government’s Southward Opening strategy is a European strategy.
He said that the Hungarian government’s concept is consistent with European aspirations and Hungary’s timing is ideal in this strategic question. Mr. Szijjártó added that significant changes have taken place in the area, and thus Russia and China have gained favourable positions while the European Union has struggled with economic difficulties.
The minister pointed out that competition has emerged within the European Union's Member States for links with South American countries, and Hungary has identified the following six fields in which the country can gain an advantage in this competition: technological cooperation; technical and engineering services; creative industries; medical equipment; the car industry; and the food industry. In addition, the politician emphasised the importance of personal contact.
Before Mr. Szijjártó held bilateral talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Pavlo Klimkin he said that the meeting’s agenda would be bilateral economic cooperation, the situation of the Hungarian communities in Transcarpathia, joint developments in the region and Hungary’s support for Ukrainian reforms. In addition to these, they would talk about the situation in the eastern part of the country and the Eastern Partnership Summit.
According to the minister, the guarantee of the rights of minorities is one of the most important European values, and the Hungarian government will always act on the basis of the local Hungarian community’s requests. Budapest would prefer it if the current situation of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine does not worsen, either because of amendment of the language law or restructuring of public administration, Mr. Szijjártó said.