Today Europe is being built in Central Europe, it is being built by Hungarians, Slovaks, Czechs and Poles, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Thursday at the inauguration of the new Komárom Danube bridge (Monostor Bridge). He stated that regardless of the pandemic, countries must remain up and running.

The Prime Minister delivered an address at the inauguration ceremony in the company of Slovak Prime Minister Igor Matovic. He highlighted that bridge building is also the building of the future, and regardless of the pandemic, countries must remain up and running. This inauguration, too, stands as proof of the fact that rather than dividing them, the Danube connects Hungarians and Slovaks together, he stressed.

He observed that he had the privilege now to inaugurate the second Danube bridge; earlier he inaugurated a bridge in Esztergom. Mr Orbán stressed that history had taught us that we could only be successful in alliance with one another, not against one another. He said both countries are situated in important locations. If “we ourselves fail to organise” this region between Germany and Russia, others will organise it for us, he stated. He added at the same time that none of the countries of the region is able to organise the region on its own, it takes minimum four countries: the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary.

He said a network of roads and railway lines is a pre-condition of the EU’s competitiveness, and the EU took part in a fantastic project here; this bridge is one of the best investments in its history. He observed that by 2025 as many as 9 Hungarian motorways would reach the borders.

The Prime Minister said it is splendid that this bridge has been completed, but what we already have is no longer a task for the future, and the Hungarians are only interested in what still lies ahead, and therefore they are never satisfied. Also now, it is great news that we have this bridge, but there are another two overarching plans that we must implement. One of them is an express road from Poland via Slovakia and Hungary towards Greece, and the entire Hungarian section of this road is not complete yet, he said, adding that the other great joint plan is the construction of a railway network which connects the capitals of the Visegrád countries together.

The Prime Minister said the bridge now inaugurated is also special because it is the undivided, joint property of two states, and it is good that today it is perfectly natural that the two countries are able to build a bridge together on the basis of trust in an arrangement where it constitutes joint property.

He said Hungarian-Slovak economic cooperation has never been better; Slovakia is Hungary’s third most important foreign trade partner, and as many as 840 Slovak businesses operate in Hungary, providing jobs for more than 4,000 people. Mr Orbán finally thanked everyone who took part in the construction of the bridge, adding he sincerely hopes that this bridge will make life easier for Hungarians and Slovaks.

(The Prime Minister/MTI)