On October 12, the European Commission will present its recommendations on the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the Union between 2014 and 2020 – announced Sándor Fazekas at the conference entitled "Renewing Europe – response concerning the Common Agricultural Policy and the challenges of the 21st Century", organised within the framework of the National Agriculture and Food Exhibition (OMÉK).
Another swearing-in ceremony for Crown Guards took place on September 20 in the cupola hall of the Parliament building. In the presence of László Kövér, the Speaker of the Parliament and the member of the Holy Crown Committee, Defence Minister Dr. Csaba Hende and Gen. Dr. Tibor Benkő, the Chief of the MoD Defence Staff, the crown guards took their oath of allegiance, pledging that “I shall be guarding the Holy Crown with utmost loyalty…and I will never let it fall into unauthorized hands, even if I have to sacrifice my life for it”.
The Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Karim Massimov welcomed the delegation leaders of the UN Pan-European Conference of Environment Ministers today, and later held bilateral talks with Sándor Fazekas. The Minister expressed his hopes that the agreements reached during his visit to Kazakhstan would come to fruition in joint projects involving the exchange of agricultural and environmental technologies, the development of business relations and the fields of education and training.
Following a six-year break, the National Agriculture and Food Exhibition (OMÉK), organised jointly by the Ministry of Rural Development and the Agricultural Marketing Centre (AMC), will take place between September 28 and October 2 at the Hungexpo Budapest Fair Centre.
Minister for National Development Tamás Fellegi is on an official visit to Washington between 23 and 27 September 2011. The minister will meet government policymakers in energy and foreign affairs and top private sector executives to discuss primarily energy and climate change policy matters. Tamás Fellegi will participate in the roundtable discussion held with energy experts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and will give a lecture at the meeting of the Atlantic Council.
The International Atomic Energy Agency elected Hungary one of its 35 members of the Governing Board, its decision-making body on 22 September, 2011 in Vienna. In the next two years this position of outstanding professional and diplomatic significance will be held by Pál Kovács, Deputy State Secretary for Energy of the Ministry of National Development.
On September 20th Minister of Foreign Affairs János Martonyi participated at the UN summit in support of Libya hosted by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and attended among others by US President Barack Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and Mustafa Abdel-Jalil, leader of the Libyan Transitional National Transitional Council (NTC).
It is us who make a decision about our present and future, not our past or our heritage. It all depends on whether we are willing to learn about and discover our national heritage for ourselves- Defence Minister Dr. Csaba Hende said during the opening ceremony of the National Gallop in Heroes’ Square on 17 September.
Hungary is represented by President Pál Schmitt and Foreign Minister János Martonyi at the High-Level Segment of the 66th session of the UN General Assembly started on September 20th.
Relying on the achievements of Hungary’s term of the presidency of the European Council, and in support of the efforts made by the Polish presidency, Hungary firmly stands up for the improvement of energy security in the European Union, Tamás Fellegi, Minister of National Development said at the two-day informal meeting of energy ministers in Wroclaw, Poland.
The most trying drilling exercise of the Hungarian Defence Forces (HDF), the assault riflemen’s tenth training course, began on Monday, September 12. There exist only a few trainings in the world, similar to this, such as for instance the ranger-training of the American Army.
The Hungarian government is firmly committed to uphold the deficit target of 2.5% of GDP as set in the Széll Kálmán Plan and the Convergence Programme even in the volatile global economic environment and the turbulences caused by the European sovereign debt crisis. To this end, the Government announced new measures to improve the budget by 1000bn HUF in 2012, including a buffer for unforeseen negative developments.
The Directorate of Environmental Protection and Water Management for Central Transdanubia has imposed a fine for infringement of waste management regulations of around HUF 135.14 billion (470 million euros) on Hungarian Aluminium Production and Trade Company (MAL Zrt.). The level of the fine was arrived at in accordance with relevant legislation. Minister of State Zoltán Kovács told our editorial team that the Directorate imposed the highest penalty possible, with regard to the scale of the disaster and the amount of pollutant released.
The American-Hungarian Military Medical Conference staged for the 19th time is held in the Stefánia Palace between 11 and 15 September. Deputy Chief of the MoD Defence Staff Lt. Gen. Zoltán Orosz opened the event Monday morning, 12 September. The General greeted the 35 American and 20 Hungarian military physicians after the rendition of the American and the Hungarian National Anthems.
On Thursday, September 15, Defence Minister Csaba Hende received in his office on a ceremonial visit Col. Ulrich Pfeiffer, the Military Attaché of the Federal Republic of Germany accredited to our country, now resigning from his post, and the new Military Attaché Col. Manfred Knopp, introducing himself. At the event present was also the Deputy State Secretary for Defence Economy Gábor Márki.
In view of the global financial crisis and Hungary's special position, the Minister for National Development, Tamás Fellegi, argued for a redistribution of burdens and risks in his address made at the American Chamber of Commerce in Hungary on the 13th of September, 2011.
Representing the Ministry of National Development, Dániel Mendelényi, head of the Secretariat of the Commissioner for the Co-ordination of Hungarian-Chinese Bilateral Relations delivered a lecture on the achievements and perspectives of Hungarian-Chinese co-operation at the China Hi-Tech Fair conference in Budapest on 13 September 2011.
The Hungarian government is determined to respond to the new challenges posed by a volatile economic environment as promptly as possible. It is of paramount importance to counter factors which could endanger the budget deficit target, and Hungary is committed to pursue the course it has established of a steadily and predictably declining deficit. Properly undertaken this plan will lead to the reduction of public debt.
As part of the government reorganisations aimed at the efficient management of the impacts of the economic crisis, as from 12 September 2011, the Minister for National Development, Tamás Fellegi has transformed the Ministry of National Development (MND). Having successfully completed the duties in six sections of the presidency of the European Council, and in view of the experiences of the first year, the Ministry’s internal operation is now simplified with unchanged powers and duties. The current six state secretariats and eleven deputy state secretariats in charge of specific policies will be replaced by four and twelve, respectively.
On the 10th anniversary of 9/11 Hungary, in line with the international community, is organizing a series of events to remember the victims of terrorism and to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation. The 9/11 commemorative concert and two international conferences will be the highlights of these events.