Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has met with the world’s most important leaders in recent weeks, has completed a record month in diplomacy, Tamás Menczer, Minister of State for Communication and Hungary’s International Image at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said at his press conference held on Wednesday.

The Minister of State highlighted that in the past few weeks Prime Minister Viktor Orbán had met with the world’s most important leaders, including the German Chancellor, the Chinese and Israeli Prime Ministers, and the Russian and Turkish Presidents, and consulted with the US President by telephone with whom he also exchanged a few words in person at the NATO summit.

“This means that the world’s leaders pay attention to the Hungarian Prime Minister, and regard him as a Central European prime minister whose opinion is important and is worth listening to”, Mr Menczer said in conclusion.

He added that while Mr Orbán’s political opponents accuse his government of isolating Hungary diplomatically, these meetings clearly show that this is “unfounded nonsense”, and in actual fact the contrary is true.

The Minister of State listed four reasons why the world’s leaders pay attention to the Hungarian Prime Minister. In his view the first reason is that the Orbán Government put an end to the “policy of let’s dare to be insignificant” embraced by the Hungarian opposition, and today Hungarian foreign policy stands up for Hungary’s interests as is expected of a country with a statehood of a thousand years. We give everyone the respect they deserve, but we also expect respect in return, he observed.

The second reason, he explained, is that the government has always stood up for the protection of Hungarian interests. It did not seek out conflicts, but did not shy away from them either. He took the view that the world’s leaders also pay attention to Hungary because the Orbán Government has given the right responses to international challenges. He added that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was the first prime minister in Europe who recognised the threats of illegal immigration, and Hungary was able to protect itself from its own resources.

Mr Menczer also highlighted that the diplomatic successes Hungary has achieved cannot be separated from Viktor Orbán’s person: he has been working for the Hungarian people for 30 years, at times in government, at other times in opposition, and this continuity and consistency have called for recognition on the international scene, he said.

The Minister of State pointed out that the direction of Hungarian foreign policy will not change in the future either. They will continue to make every effort in the interest of protecting Hungarian interests, whether they involve security or economic issues. We have a vested interest in a European Union that is built on the foundations of strong nation states, as well as in maintaining pragmatic relations resting on mutual respect with our eastern and southern partners, he stressed.

In answer to a question related to the Greek fires, Mr Menczer said that the Hungarian Embassy and consular services in Athens are continuously monitoring events and are in contact with the competent Greek authorities, but there has been no report on Hungarian citizens in trouble to date. He added that the Embassy was contacted in a single instance when a Hungarian parent was unable to locate their child, but the Ambassador and his colleagues immediately helped and found the child who was well and had not been involved in any incident. The Minister of State recommended to those travelling to Greece that they read the information posted on the website of the consular services which is updated continuously, and that they also register on the website which is important because in the event of trouble it makes it easier and swifter for the authorities to contact them.

In answer to the question as to why cohesion funds have been reduced in the EU budget and whether the reason can be that Hungary has disagreed with EU decision-makers on a great many occasions, Mr Menczer said that the government will not support any proposal regarding the budget which seeks to spend more money on the promotion and organisation of migration because it takes the view that money should instead be spent on the protection of the borders. He stressed that in the past few years Hungary has pursued an exemplary economic policy, and it is therefore strange that the draft seeks to withdraw funds from a country which has observed EU regulations and to give funds to countries which have failed to do so.

He added that the government will not accept political blackmail, and would find it shocking if Brussels decision-makers entertained the idea of penalising the Hungarian people due to the Hungarian government’s migration policy.

(MTI)