The success of the upcoming EU Eastern Partnership Summit in Vilnius and the resolving of the budget debate within the EU are in the interests of both the Lithuanian EU Presidency and Hungary. János Martonyi and Linas Linkevičius held talks in Budapest on Wednesday on the margins of the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting of the Visegrad Group (V4) and of the Central European Initiative (CEI) being held on October 30-31.

The two foreign ministers agreed that Hungarian-Lithuanian relations were excellent and that they appreciated both bilateral consular cooperation and the recent growth in bilateral trade. Hungary provides consular services for Lithuanian citizens in 11 countries, while Lithuania does the same for Hungarian citizens in 8 countries. János Martonyi and Linas Linkevičius decided to initiate a cooperation program within the areas of cultural and social relations, which would include bolstering higher education cooperation, launching a youth exchange program and continuing the Hungarian-Lithuanian academic forum.

The Hungarian Foreign Minister expressed his congratulations to his colleague for effectively implementing the objectives of the Lithuanian EU Presidency. János Martonyi recalled that the Eastern Partnership Summit in Vilnius in November would represent a significant moment of EU neighbourhood policy. Both sides anticipated that conditions would allow for concluding the Association Agreement between the EU and Ukraine in Vilnius.

Following their meeting and on the initiation of the Lithuanian side, the two foreign ministers inaugurated together the monument depicting the royal couple of Jogaila (Władysław II Jagiełło) and Hedvig (Jadwiga) – who was the daughter of Louis I, King of Hungary and, later, of Poland – in the Europe Garden of the Castle District in Budapest.   

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs)