“Cooperation with Russia is in Hungary’s national economic and national security interests”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó told public media on Tuesday in Moscow.

“Hungary has always had an interest in maintaining pragmatic relations with Moscow based on common sense and mutual respect”, Mr. Szijjártó said prior to the meeting between Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Russian capital on Tuesday afternoon.

The Minister indicated that a decisive portion of Hungary’s energy supply comes from Russia, and “we are not in the same situation as others an ocean away and from a territory that is a few hundred thousand square kilometres larger, to proclaim that we have no need to talk to Russia”.

“We in Central Europe know very well that there is a place for dialogue and a need for dialogue, because it is only in this way that cooperation based on mutual trust can be established”, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade said.

Summarising his Monday meetings, Mr. Szijjártó explained: “A cooperation and development agreement that could best serve Hungary’s interests is taking shape, as a result of which the launching of a third direct flight linking Hungary and Russia between Budapest and Kazan is now within reach”.

“Advanced negotiations are also in progress concerning a significant increase in the role played by Hungary within the Moscow-based International Investment Bank, which already has a 70 million euro loan portfolio with relation to Hungarian projects”, the Minister told reporters.

He also reported on the agreement concluded with Gazprom, according to which negotiations on natural gas shipments for 2020 will also soon begin. The Hungarian party is planning to purchase some 4.1 billion cubic metres of natural gas.

“We also agreed that Hungarian oil company MOL will be able to continue its extraction activities in Russia”, he added.

Mr. Szijjártó told the press that an agreement on the continuation of heavy industry cooperation was also concluded in the interests of the rebuilding of the Hungarian ship industry and the development of the Hungarian helicopter manufacturing and assembly industry.

In addition, a decision was also made with relation to the fact that Budapest Waterworks will be given the opportunity to perform high added value projects on the Russian market, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó informed the media.

(MTI)