The Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Hungarian Ministry of Defence welcome President Hamid Karzai’s announcement on the start of the first phase for transition to Afghan security lead scheduled to begin in July 2011 in selected areas of the country.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary welcomes that according to the agreement between the Cuban Roman Catholic Church and the Cuban Government the last two members of the 75 Cuban opposition activists, who had been arrested and sentenced to long prison term in 2003, have regained their freedom. We were very pleased to learn that on the 12th of March Dr. Oscar Elías Biscet also could return to his home, whom Viktor Orbán took under his personal patronage in 2007, and recently as Prime Minister of Hungary nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Speech by Minister of State Zsolt Németh
At its March 2, 2011 session, the Government of the Republic of Hungary decided to set up the Tom Lantos Institute. The mission of the Institute bearing the name of the late Hungarian-American representative will be to support human and minority rights in Central Europe. The opening of the Institute is scheduled to take place in the summer of 2011, and is to be attended by high-level international delegations and visitors.
János Hóvári, Deputy State Secretary for Global Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs visited the State of Kuwait as special envoy of President Pál Schmitt on February 26, 2011, and participated in the large-scale celebrations commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Independence of Kuwait as well as the 20th anniversary of its liberation from the Iraqi occupation. The events were attended by more than twenty rulers and presidents, along with numerous other statesmen from over 57 countries, incumbent and previous leaders of the different international organizations, as well as the commandants of the coalition forces of the military operations in 1991.
In the presence of Ambassadors accredited from the region to Hungary, János Hóvári opened the exhibition „FOURTEEN CENTURIES OF COINS FROM THE ISLAMIC WORLD” in the Helikon Castle Museum in Keszthely.
Hungary as member of the European Union and as the current President of the Council of the European Union welcomes the peaceful and genuine execution of the referendum on self-determination for Southern Sudan.
The official English translation of the Hungarian media law was finished yesterday and was sent by e-mail to every Hungarian diplomatic mission abroad and foreign missions accredited to Hungary.
The Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran accredited to the UN in Vienna addressed a letter to several representations in Vienna, among them the delegation of the European Union and the Hungarian delegation, inviting the addressees to participate in a visit to unspecified Iranian nuclear facilities in January 2011.
The leadership and diplomatic corps of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary was shocked to hear the sad news of the death of Presidential special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke.
The Ambassador of the United States in Budapest informed the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary well in advance about the planned publication of documents by WikiLeaks.
On 22 October 2010, the foreign ministers of the Visegrad Group met in Bratislava under Slovak Presidency at the second ministerial meeting especially dedicated to the Western Balkans.
Times change, and so do we, the Romans said, but it is not at all sure that those two changes take place at the same rate and balance each other out. Some people were “ahead of their time”, but more changed slower than the period they lived in. Anyway, the key to a successful (foreign) policy is to see and understand changes and to take pace with them, or even to anticipate them.
On October 4 2010 an industrial accident took place at an alumina factory belonging to a privately owned company, Magyar Alumínium ZRt. Due to the ruptured dam of the sludge reservoir, a mixture of 600-700 thousand m³ of red sludge and water inundated the lower sections of the settlements of Kolontar, Devecser and Somlovasarhely in Veszprem county.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary welcomes the decision, that as a result of the mediation efforts by the Cuban Roman Catholic Church and Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos of Spain, Cuban authorities shall release 52 political prisoners, and considers this development an initial step towards the actual improvement of the human rights situation in Cuba.
The new Hungarian government seeks to expand, in a geographic sense, its Central European policy in all directions, Foreign Minister János Martonyi said during his visit to Vienna on July 13, 2010. The head of Hungarian diplomacy travelled to Austria at the invitation of his Austrian counterpart, Michael Spindelegger. He was received on a courtesy visit also by the Federal President, Heinz Fischer.
The Programme of National Cooperation: Work, Home, Family, Health, Order
Foreign Minister János Martonyi has sent a telegram to his Slovak counterpart Mikuláš Dzurinda, congratulating him on his appointment.
Foreign Minister János Martonyi represented Hungary at the Croatia Summit, attended by high-ranking officials from the European Union and Balkan countries, held in Dubrovnik.
Foreign Minister János Martonyi on July 9, 2010 met Össur Skarphédinsson, Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade, during Mr Skarphédinsson’s official visit to Hungary.
Foreign Minister János Martonyi paid a visit to Berlin on July 8 and was received by Guido Westerwelle, German Vice-Chancellor and foreign minister, on an introductory meeting.
The main topics of discussion during the recent visit to France by Foreign Minister János Martonyi were the citizenship law, Slovak-Hungarian relations, restoring the economy to health and Hungary’s impending turn at the EU rotating presidency. Mr Martonyi held talks with his French counterpart Bernard Kouchner in Paris on July 7, 2010. He also met Christine Lagarde, the economy minister, Pierre Lellouche, state secretary for European affairs and Jean-David Levitte, chief advisor to the French president.
Hungary’s foreign ministry today launched a case against Slovakia at the European Court for denying President László Sólyom entry to its territory on August 21, 2009, with reference to the directive on the free movement of persons.
The Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Slovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs announce that the Hungarian Presidency of the Visegrad Group (V4) ended on 30 June 2010 and Slovakia has taken over the V4 Presidency from 1 July 2010 until 30 June 2011.
Hungary’s Foreign Minister, János Martonyi, paid a one-day official visit to Bucharest on June 29, 2010, at the invitation of Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Baconschi.
On June 25, 2010, Parliamentary State Secretary Zsolt Németh received Admiral Giampaolo Di Paola, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, in the Foreign Ministry for a courtesy visit.
The Hungarian Foreign Ministry takes the position that, on the basis of the EU 2004/38/EK guidelines on the free movement of persons, Slovakia should not have denied President of the Republic Lászlo Sólyom entry to its territory; Hungary will pursue the case against Slovakia, taking it to the European Court of Justice.
The Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Hungary regards Sunday’s decision by the security cabinet of the government of Israel, easing conditions for the delivery of aid and commercial goods for civilian use, as well as certain materials which enable reconstruction, to the Gaza strip, as an important confidence-boosting development.
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini paid an official visit to Budapest on 16 June at the invitation of his Hungarian counterpart Janos Martonyi.
Foreign Minister János Martonyi will pay a working visit to Washington on June 23-25, 2010, at the invitation of US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton.