Following the adoption by the Hungarian National Assembly on 25 November 2014 by an overwhelming majority, on 5 December the ratification of the EU-Georgia, EU-Moldova and EU-Ukraine Association Agreements was signed into law by President of the Republic János Áder.
Hungary’s tourism traffic continued to grow in the month of October 2014: the number of guests was up by 7.5 percent and that of tourism nights increased to almost 2 million. Steadily rising tourism traffic has also resulted in higher revenues: accommodation fees were up sharply, by 18 percent over the past one year, and totalled HUF 17.5bn. The expansion in October was also bolstered by the autumn school holiday and the subsequent long weekend, but various tourism development projects, improvement in the quality of services and the SZÉP Card have also added to the sector’s growth.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will represent Hungary at a meeting of Prime Ministers of the Visegrad 4 and the Swiss Head of State in Bratislava, Slovakia.
National sovereignty consists of energy, financial and trade independence, Prime Minister Orbán pointed out in Kossuth Radio’s morning interview, adding he regards Senator McCain’s recent claims as “extremist”. Viktor Orbán also noted Hungary’s national sovereignty is far more important than dealing with such statements.
Péter Szijjártó held bilateral talks on the occasion that the Ministerial Council of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) met on Thursday in Basel, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) informed Hungarian newswire MTI.
Speaking in Budapest on Tuesday, the Minister of State for Security Policy and International Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said that in the future the world's societies must deal with a host of crisis situations, and international humanitarian organisations must continue to care for the afflicted.
Government Spokesman Zoltán Kovács and Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga announced at a joint press conference in Budapest that on 4 December the State of Hungary and General Electric (GE) signed a preliminary contract on the state acquisition of Budapest Bank. The purchasing process is expected to be finalized by the end of the first half of 2015.
The prime ministers of Hungary and Serbia exchanged views on recent developments concerning Russia's decision to abandon plans for the South Stream gas pipeline.
Levente Magyar, Minister of State for Economic Diplomacy summoned André Goodfriend, Chargé d’Affairs of the Embassy of the United States in Budapest at noon.
On Tuesday, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said, following Russia’s decision concerning the South Stream gas pipeline, that further opportunities need to be explored for the long-term guarantee of secure energy supplies for Hungary.