“The hysteria that is sweeping through the European political elite because of the result of the U.S. presidential election is pathetic and at the same time entertaining; Hungary is not participating in this”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó declared in the recess of a summit of EU foreign and defence ministers in Brussels.

The Hungarian Foreign Minister told reporters that Hungary does not wish to participate in the aforementioned hysteria because it regards the election of Republican Party candidate Donald Trump as good news.

He stressed that Hungary had intentionally not taken part in the informal meeting of EU foreign Ministers convened on Sunday evening to discuss the situation caused by Trump’s election, for political reasons. According to Mr. Szijjártó the opinion and decision of the American people must be respected, even if the people did not come to the decision that the European liberal political and media elite expected of them, he stressed.

“It is a strange liberal approach to democracy that when people make decisions that certain members of the elite agree with then the state of democracy is in order and something to be followed, but when a decision goes against the will of the elite then they convene an emergency meeting and criticise it”, the Minister said.

Mr. Szijjártó declared that what happened in the United States is “particularly good news” for the world, because the newly elected President’s approach to exporting democracy is favourable for the world. “The previous approach to exporting democracy in an unbridled manner and without limitations has caused a lot of trouble”, the Minster said, adding that continuing this practice is dangerous because it did not take into account the fact that the world’s regions and countries have differing histories, cultures and traditions.

“Not taking all of this into account is a mistake, because it leads to events such as those in several countries in our eastern and south-eastern vicinity”, Mr. Szijjártó said without mentioning details.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)