Hungary aims to develop the best possible friendship with its neighbours, Foreign Minister János Martonyi declared at the Friends of Hungary 2014 conference in Budapest on Monday.

Making friends and establishing friendships with other nations is a basic principle of foreign policy, János Martonyi said. The aim of foreign policy is to develop the best possible relations with "every worthy country", and maintaining good relations with neighbouring countries is particularly important, he added.

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The Hungarian Foreign Minister claimed that Hungary was in a unique situation in that the Hungarian nation as a cultural entity is not only present in Hungary but also in the neighbouring countries and ethnic Hungarians living in neighbouring countries define themselves as a community.

János Martonyi stressed that Hungary had come to terms with the loss of its former territories and would only demand that neighbouring states acknowledge the fact that they had acquired significant Hungarian communities along with the territories. This could be the foundation for developing the best possible friendships between our nations, he added. The Hungarian Foreign Minister declared that the Hungarian communities living outside Hungary are to decide what strategy they want to pursue and the Hungarian Government must support whatever strategy they adopt.

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When asked about Hungary-US relations in the context of the assignment of a new US Ambassador to serve in Budapest, János Martonyi stated that "we are looking forward to welcoming the Ambassador." He said there were differences of opinion between Hungary and the United States on some issues, but "most of these are due to misunderstandings and misinformation." The Hungarian Foreign Minister asked incumbent Ambassador Colleen Bradley Bell not to follow "guidelines scripted by others in advance", but "to establish a view based on her own experience."

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs)