"Kazakhstan is one of the fastest growing economies I the world today, with excellent economic performance that it can be rightly proud of," Minister for Rural Development said in his speech at the seminar organised on 28 January 2014 in Budapest to promote cooperation between the European Union and Kazakhstan.

In view of the fact that Hungarian agriculture is one of the strongest in Europe and is producing increasingly high quality and dependable products, there is significant opportunity for cooperation with Kazakhstan, he said. Possible areas of cooperation include seed production, the development of the food processing industry, cattle breeding, irrigation, land administration, animal and plant health, game management and agricultural further education.

DownloadThe seminar was also attended by, amongst others Hungarian Foreign Minister János Martonyi, Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga and Kazakh Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov.

DownloadThe Hungarian Foreign Minister emphasised that healthcare, infrastructure development, agriculture, energy and innovation are the main areas for cooperation between the two countries. He added that Hungary could be a bridge towards the West for Kazakhstan just as Kazakhstan could be a bridge to the East for Hungary.

DownloadKazakh Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov declared that Kazakhstan regarded Hungary as a reliable partner since Hungary had a growing economy and had its own plans to build a solid future. He welcomed the fact that Hungary was ready to "open towards to the East” and asserted that his country wanted to develop a fruitful cooperation with Hungary.

DownloadAt the event, Hungarian Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga said that all the necessary conditions were there for the development of relations between Hungary and Kazakhstan, because Kazakhstan regarded Hungary as its strategic partner and the two countries were also connected through their historical roots.

(Prime Minister’s Office)