Minister of Defence Dr Csaba Hende received His Excellency Hasan Kemal Gür, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Turkey to Hungary for a complimentary meeting on 17th September.

At the beginning of the talks Ambassador Hasan Kemal Gür was presented with a book on the history of Parliament on his sixtieth birthday. During the talks the parties reviewed the current situation of the bilateral Hungarian –Turkish relations and the possibility of cooperation in the field of military industry. Furthermore they talked about the participation of Turkish Flying Stars at Kecskemét Air Show. Minister of Defence mentioned that the Hungarian Defence Forces’ developments in military technical means lag behind; as a consequence the military equipment is outdated. He added: ’’We are open to the Hungarian-Turkish cooperation in the field of military techniques and defence industry. As you know, three things are required for the military development: Money, money, and money.” Minister of Defence pointed out that one of the pillars of cooperation is education. Turkish speaking officers are welcome in Hungary. In the future we will send soldiers to Turkey for training purposes. He expressed his thanks for the Turkish help for training Special Operations Forces. At the end of the meeting the Minister of Defence thanked the ambassador for the spectacular show the Turkish Stars demonstrated at Kecskemét Air Show.

Later that day Dr Csaba Hende received Her Excellency Siri Ellen Sletner the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Norway to Hungary for a complimentary meeting in his office. During the talks the parties reviewed the Hungarian-Norwegian relations, the experiences in Afghanistan mission, SAC C-17, and the training programme of the labour-market reintegration of soldiers. ’’Our country is committed to the success of the NATO-led operation in Afghanistan. Our intention is that the Afghan government and the Afghan Armed Forces would take over responsibility for security throughout the country.’’ the minister said.

Minister of Defence stated: ’’The fight against terrorism is our national interest. Hungarian soldiers are present in Afghanistan to help restructure and consolidate the state following an extreme dictatorship and a terrible war. They intend to establish a state which is stabile thus avoid instability in international relations. ’’

Mentioning the Strategic Airlift C-17 Capability (SAC) the parties agreed that the project realized in Pápa is an excellent example of cooperation between NATO members. Csaba Hende informed the Ambassador that Hungary would increase the number of troops on mission by nearly 200 soldiers despite the tight budget caused by the previous government and the deteriorating security conditions in Afghanistan.

Translated by Dóra Darnyik