“The structure of economic cooperation must be reorganised in view of recent changes”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said in Baku on Saturday.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán began a two-day official visit to Azerbaijan on Saturday. Prior to the commencement of the Hungarian delegation’s official programme, Mr. Szijjártó told the press: Azerbaijan has the most dynamic economy in the Caucasus region, but recent developments in the global economy and world politics mean the structure of economic cooperation needs to be reorganised.

In view of the continuous reduction of oil prices, the shrinking of the Russian economy and the devaluation of the national currency, the Hungarian economy must switch from simple product exports to marketing high added value export products and services that also include services that are controlled by IT solutions, Mr. Szijjártó explained.

Accordingly, the Hungarian delegation is striving to achieve progress in five areas during the two-day visit, he continued. Today, an agreement will be concluded on the establishment of a joint development fund within the framework of which enterprises that offer Hungarian electronic information technology solutions can achieve success on the Azerbaijan market, he said.

With regard to infrastructure development, Hungarian companies have already succeeded in signing contracts worth a total of 100 million forints on the planning of roads and bridges, and if they are successful we will also have an opportunity to take part in the construction work, he added.

As far as the agricultural market goes, 2.5 million US Dollars in agricultural and agrarian development projects are already underway in Azerbaijan with Hungarian participation, and we would like to maintain the level of Hungarian livestock exports achieved in recent years, he said.

The Minister also stated that within the field of energy, the delegation was aiming to establish cooperation between Hungarian oil company MOL and its Azerbaijan counterpart SOCAR. Hungarian water management companies have already concluded contracts worth 2 million euros with Azerbaijan, and the delegation is now trying to acquire further markets for them, Mr. Szijjártó added.

In addition, Hungarian universities are also signing agreements with their Azerbaijan counterparts to enable the 200-student scholarship quota offered to Azerbaijan by Hungary to be fully exploited from the beginning of the next academic year, he noted.

Mr. Szijjártó also said that the fact that there would again be direct passenger flights between Budapest and Baku in a few weeks’ time thanks to Wizzair was a huge step forward in air transport cooperation, in addition to which one of the largest cargo airlines, Silk Way, is continuously operating a route between the two capitals.

In closing, the Minister said that Hungary and Azerbaijan would also be signing a political agreement according to which the two countries would be supporting each other’s applications for various posts in the United Nations.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)