It is rational to establish close cooperation with Kazakhstan, since it is one of the world’s most rapidly developing countries, the Prime Minister said in the Kazakh capital Astana on Wednesday.
Viktor Orbán is on a three-day official visit to Kazakhstan, where he held talks with his Kazakh counterpart Karim Massimov.
At their joint press conference, Mr. Orbán talked about Hungarian-Kazakh relations, highlighting the central role of Hungarian oil and gas company MOL, which is engaged in cooperative projects in Kazakhstan. The two prime ministers agreed on the signing of a bilateral air transport agreement aimed at establishing direct air routes between the two countries. In addition, Mr. Orbán emphasised the importance of cooperation in the field of engineering services for nuclear power provision.
Mr. Orbán said that in the future Hungary will offer scholarships to 200 Kazakh students.
He added that the Government has decided that Hungary will join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. He also accepted an invitation to a business forum being held in May, and will attend Expo 2017 in Astana.
The Prime Minister said that across the globe everyone is wondering how it is possible to be successful in a rapidly changing world. As its history has left it without most of the raw material and energy reserves it once had, Hungary is not in good position to answer this question. He considers it difficult for Hungary to return to the path of success, “since neither our size nor our natural assets have marked that route out for us.”
According to Mr. Orbán, this is precisely why it is important to establish a good relationship with the rapidly developing parts of the world, and therefore to have strong ties with Kazakhstan.
The Prime Minister reminded his audience that Mr. Massimov’s earlier visit to Budapest had established a friendly relationship between the two countries, which is why Hungarian delegations will always gladly visit Kazakhstan; this time six members of the Government accompanied the Prime Minister to Astana.
At the press conference, Mr. Massimov said that Hungary as an EU Member State and Kazakhstan as an important country in Asia can strengthen their strategic cooperation with each other. He explained that their meetings have gone beyond the usual level of political dialogue, and cooperation between the two countries has been strengthened even further by the meeting between Mr. Orbán and President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Mr. Massimov added that Hungary and Kazakhstan are cooperating in a number of fields.
Mr. Orbán was received by Nursultan Nazarbayev on Wednesday morning, before the meeting between the two prime ministers.
In the course of the day, the following agreements were formalised: a memorandum of understanding on establishment of a strategic council, signed by Viktor Orbán; a memorandum of understanding on the establishment of a joint financial fund involving KazAgro Holding and Eximbank, signed by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó; an agreement on mutual assistance in criminal matters, signed by Minister of Justice László Trócsányi; and a bilateral agreement on training cooperation, signed by Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga. Each of the agreements was also signed by the relevant minister’s Kazakh counterpart.
(Prime Minister's Office/MTI)
