“According to the current position, there is a realistic chance that Hungary’s targets will be realised in the United Kingdom’s European Union exit process”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó declared following a meeting of related ministers from the remaining EU member states in Brussels on Monday.

At his press conference, the Minister explained that the Government had four important goals in process with relation to Brexit: the brokering of a fair agreement on the conditions of the exit, preserving close economic relations, maintaining cooperation within the field of security, and guaranteeing the acquired rights of Hungarian citizens living in the United Kingdom.

“According to the current position, there is a realistic chance that Hungary’s targets will be realised”, Mr. Szijjártó said, adding that Hungary regrets the exit of Great Britain, but this is something with regard to which UK citizens have the exclusive right to decide, and accordingly the Government does not wish to comment on the move.

The Brexit meeting was followed by a meeting of EU foreign ministers at which, according to Mr. Szijjártó, cooperation with the countries of Central Asia and the situation in Bosnia-Hercegovina were discussed, in addition to which Ukraine will also be on the agenda.

In reply to a question, the Minister told reporters that former Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski indicated his wish to submit a request for asylum at one of Hungary’s foreign representations, but the Government played no role in him getting there.

He underlined that the Hungarian authorities encountered the affair for the first time at this certain foreign representation, in a country neighbouring Macedonia, from where Gruevski “reached Hungary totally legally and in accordance with all relative national and international laws; all of his border crossings were lawful”.

As he explained, none of his EU colleagues brought up the matter on Monday, but he will be holding bilateral talks with the Macedonian Foreign Minister in early December on the sidelines of the NATO meeting in Brussels.

“For Hungary, supporting Macedonia is not a question of party of government sympathy”, he said.

In addition, he repeated the Government’s position, according to which this is a legal issue, not a political issue.

In reply to a question concerning the Central European University (CEU), Mr. Szijjártó said that for the moment the Government does not see it as proven that the institution does in fact perform education activities in the United States.

“I have no knowledge of preparations for a mandate aimed at enabling me to conclude another (higher education) agreement”, he said.

(MTI)