The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Minister of State for Economic Diplomacy Levente Magyar has summoned the Romanian Embassy’s Chargé d’affaires to his office.

In a statement to Hungarian news agency MTI on Tuesday, the Ministry wrote: In view of the fact that Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta “has once again made crude comments” about Hungary’s efforts to handle the migration crisis, Levente Magyar summoned the Chargé d'affaires and expressed his disbelief at the fact that the Romania Prime Minister “is still attempting to use anti-Hungarian lies to recover his internal political prestige and save his tarnished personal reputation”.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade was reacting to a statement by the Romanian Prime Minister according to which “Romania will treat migrants like human beings, unlike out Hungarian neighbours, who herd them with sticks and give them each a number”. According to the Ministry’s statement, it is “especially offensive” that in view of the fact that Romania’s government has so far been unsuccessful in preparing its country for joining the Schengen Area, it is “using ridiculous claims” to criticise a country that “is making strenuous efforts to fulfil its obligations to protect the external borders of the European Union” from the outside and without any obligation or responsibility to police the Area’s borders.

Hungary will protest against all “unfair and hypocritical criticism” of Hungary, no matter what the source, the statement declared.

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade/MTI)