“Austria is one of Hungary’s most important allies, and the two governments have returned to friendly relations”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said on Thursday in Budapest following a meeting with his Austrian counterpart.

At the press conference following the meeting, the Minister highlighted the fact that the two countries are linked “by a thousand strands” and their economic cooperation is extremely significant, while with relation to migration the parties agree that the causes of migration must be handled primarily, and it is possible to defend the EU’s maritime border.

As he explained, Austria is Hungary’s second most important trade partner, with bilateral trade flow exceeding ten billion euros last year. Austrian companies are the fourth most significant investors in Hungary and provide jobs to 75 thousand people, the Minister said.

Mr. Szijjártó also mentioned that in recent years there had been extremely serious disputes between the two countries, primarily with relation to migration, but that together with Austria’s current government they had succeeded in doing away with this unworthy state of affairs. He welcomed the fact that the current Austrian Government is concentrating on dialogue and friendship, and as a result the “skirmishes” that had previously soured bilateral relations are no longer occurring.

Migration was the main topic of discussion at the meeting, Mr. Szijjártó told the press. Hungary regards the quota system as a “dismal failure” and believes that emphasis must instead be placed on border protection. The security of Hungarian citizens is our primary concern, “we are protecting our borders and reserve the right to decide who can enter the country and who we live with”, he added.

The Foreign Minister stressed that the UN migration package is outrageous, and Hungary would like them to rewrite and amend it.  We need an anti-migration document instead of the pro-migration UN proposals, and accordingly Hungary will be submitting the proposals that he announced and outlined at a conference this morning, he explained.

“Our goal should be to stop migration, not organise migration, and the level of pro-immigration bias that is obvious from the package is outrageous”, he declared.

Mr. Szijjártó told the press that he and his Austrian counterpart had also discussed EU enlargement, and the countries of the Western Balkans can count on Hungary’s support during the course of the accession process. With relation to the Schengen system, the Minister said that the continued survival of the Schengen system is one of the most important elements of Europe’s economic competitiveness.

Austrian Minister for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs Karin Kneissl stressed that Austria will be taking over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of this year, and during Austria’s period as president the greatest emphasis must be placed on subsidiarity. Member states must engage in further consultations with regard to migration and the asylum system, she said.

According to the Austrian Foreign Minister, the Western Balkan countries are part of Europe not only from a geographical perspective, but also from a historical perspective, and accordingly Austria feels that it is its duty to further the cause of EU enlargement.

She also spoke about the fact that Austria differentiates between legal and illegal immigrants.

Karin Kneissl noted that Austria is in a dispute with the European Commission with relation to the Paks II Nuclear Power Plant project, and the issue is not a bilateral one.

In reply to a question, Mr. Szijjártó said Hungary is in dispute with “everyone who is on the side of migration”, who wants to open Europe’s borders to everyone without limit, and who wants to turn Hungary into an immigrant country, and George Soros is one such person.

Also in reply to a question, the Hungarian Foreign Minister said that the expansion of the V4 is not on the agenda, but that cooperation between Austria and the Visegrád Group is very important.

(MTI)