At the start of his tour in Southeast Asia on 24 April 2012, Foreign Minister János Martonyi gave an interview to The Jakarta Post, the leading daily newspaper of Indonesia published in English. The Minister introduced the purposes of his visit in the paper aimed at Indonesian businessmen and decision makers, as well as foreigners living in the Asian country. The head of the Foreign Ministry focussed on the overview of the Hungarian-Indonesian relations, and following the interview, he negotiates with his colleague, Marty Natalegawa.
János Martonyi is looking forward to the visit, as it has been a long time since the last travel of a Hungarian Foreign Minister to the country. Responding to a question of the newspaper, he explained that global opening – both geographically and politically – is a central element of Hungary's foreign policy. Within the framework of this opening, our country pays attention to regions geographically far from us as well. Due to Indonesia’s democratic commitment, there is a community of values between the two states. The Minister considered Indonesia’s global role to be extremely important: the country is a member of the G20, a considerable stabilising factor in the Far-Eastern region, and the leading power of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The head of the Hungarian Foreign Ministry deemed the inter-university cooperation particularly important in the relations of the two countries. In the last nearly 20 years, 170 Hungarian students have studied in Indonesia, and a large number of Indonesian students attended Hungarian universities.
The Minister also mentioned the Hungarian EU Presidency, which played an important role in strengthening the relations between the two continents. The ASEAN, with which Europe itself has very close relations, is the second most successful integration after the European Union. Even closer links are to be established at the upcoming EU-ASEAN summit in Brunei. The Minister highlighted that Central Europe is a market with 100 million consumers, and as a region, despite the general crisis in Europe, it can be regarded as economically successful. Answering a question, János Martonyi emphasised that all the countries of the region would join the euro zone in the future; this is only a matter of time.
On his tour in Southeast Asia, the head of Hungarian diplomacy has discussions in Indonesia, participates in the EU-ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Brunei, has conversations with Albert del Rosario, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines; Anifah Aman, Foreign Minister of Malaysia; and Mohamed Bolkiah, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Brunei; in addition, he visits Thailand as well.
Indonesia commenced the democratic transition in 1998, 14 years ago; today it has become the largest and most developed democracy of the region. Due to its growing regional influence and increasing business opportunities, the country is an important partner of Hungary in Asia. Despite the financial difficulties in Europe, our bilateral trade is growing dynamically. Hungary’s export to Indonesia rose by 12% in 2011. The Minister's visit aims to strengthen the economic cooperation of the two states as well, including the involvement of SMEs in trade.
(kormany.hu)
