Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén had talks in Iran with respect to the development of Hungarian-Iranian bilateral relations, including nuclear security cooperation, Bertalan Havasi, the head of the Press Office of the Prime Minister informed the Hungarian news agency MTI on Sunday.
Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén’s official visit to Iran came to an end. Members of the delegation included János Latorcai, Deputy Speaker of Parliament, and András Aradszki, State Secretary for Energy Affairs at the Ministry for National Development, the press chief’s communication reads.
The delegation was received by Esak Djahangiri, First Vice President of Iran, the host of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s visit in 2015, Ali Larijani, Chairman of the Parliament of Iran, and Masoud Pezeshkian, First Deputy Speaker of Parliament.
Mr Semjén also met with Hossein-Ali Amiri, Vice-President for Parliamentary Affairs, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif.
The Deputy Prime Minister and his delegation had talks with Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran. On the occasion of the meeting, the parties signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the cooperation of the two countries in the field of nuclear energy, with the primary emphasis on nuclear safety, in line with the norms of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the European Union.
During the course of the visit, the delegation also had talks with the governors of the four Iranian provinces, and further met with the leaders of religious communities in Iran, including Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi, Archbishop Ramzi Garmou of the Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Tehran, and Shipan Kahiyan, suffragan bishop of the Vank Cathedral of Isfahan, head of the Armenian Orthodox Church.
During the visit, the Hungarian party announced that, based on the European Commission’s decision, they are ready to commence the negotiations which are aimed at the conclusion of an investment protection agreement. This document, together with the agreement on the avoidance of double taxation which entered into force at the beginning of the year, the Economic Cooperation Agreement and the documents signed at the meeting of the Economic Mixed Committee held at the beginning of February provide a broad conventional basis for the development of economic relations, Mr Havasi’s communication reads.