According to its Winter Forecast published earlier today, the European Commission expects that fiscal deficit will be higher than anticipated by the Hungarian Government. Contrary to Brussels’ expectations, however, Hungary is certain of achieving a fiscal deficit of well below 3 percent.
The NATO member countries will hold a major European exercise in 2015, Minister of Defence Csaba Hende told Hungarian News Agency MTI. He is participating in the two-day meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels which started on Thursday, February 21.
Developing defence capabilities and taking stock of the accomplishment of defence tasks which were agreed at the Chicago NATO Summit in last May are the main focus of the NATO defence ministerial meeting held in Brussels on February 21–22.
Parliamentary State Secretary Zsolt Nèmeth declared that the cooperation of Visegrád, Baltic and Nordic states could be efficient when it comes to EU enlargement, EU neighbourhood policy and relations with Russia. The Secretary of State of the MFA responsible for Parliamentary Affairs represented Hungary at a meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Visegrád group (V4 - Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia), the Baltic States and Scandinavian countries held on 20th February in Gdansk, Poland.
State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and External Economic Relations Péter Szijjártó declared in an interview given to Wirtschaftsblatt that no new sectoral taxes are planned.
French companies will play an important role in Hungary’s economic growth in 2013, said Péter Szijjártó, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and External Economic Relations following his talks held in Paris.
Minister of State László Felkai of the Ministry of Interior and Zsuzsanna Végh, the Director General of the Hungarian Office of Immigration and Nationality, presented the Office's report on 2012, and last year's characteristics of the migrant situation at a press conference.
In December 2012, gross average wages in the private sector increased by 8.3 percent, whereas net wages excluding family tax allowances were up by 6.2 percent, beating inflation, in comparison to the corresponding period of the previous year – the Hungarian Central Statistical Office reported earlier this morning.
The Hungarian-Flemish Joint Commission held its scheduled meeting on 21 January 2013 in Brussels. The Hungarian Co-Chairman of the Joint Commission, Minister of State for Employment Sándor Czomba, signed an agreement with his Flemish partner, Secretary-General of the Flemish Foreign Ministry Koen Verlaeckt on the work agenda for the upcoming period.
As about 40-45 percent of Hungary’s general government debt has been denominated in foreign currencies. The duration became shorter with the IMF loan, which was unavoidable in 2008, so that the refinancing is due relatively soon, the country required further foreign currency resources. Thanks to the improving confidence in the fundamentals of Hungary and positive international investment climate and sentiment, the Government Debt Management Agency (AKK) mandated large investments banks last week to manage USD-denominated benchmark government bond issuance, after a highly successful investor roadshow. As a result altogether 3.25bn USD bonds were sold with yields slightly below the indicative levels.
The Government assures Hungarians those rights that citizens of other EU countries are also entitled to. The European Commission disputes the regulation providing tax-free status for distilling home-made pálinka; in their view the exemption is in breach of EU regulations. In the opinion of the Government, however, the relevant Hungarian legislation is fully in accordance with EU legal requirements.
The European Grouping for Territorial Cooperation (EGTC) is well-placed to become the driving force of inter-regional cooperation, Deputy Prime Minister Navracsics stated, adding that the Central European Initiative (CEI), in turn, may make a valuable contribution towards rejuvenating natural areas of cooperation which once permeated the region.
An energy cooperation agreement was concluded at the meeting of Hungarian-Macedonian Economic Joint Commission in Budapest.
In a speech in Budapest on Tuesday, Slovakian President Ivan Gašparovič said that Slovak-Hungarian co-operation is increasingly becoming an everyday reality, and that politicians from the two countries must strive to build good neighbourly relations. Following this, Deputy Prime Minister Tibor Navracsics said in a short address that Hungary seeks to deepen co-operation in every area with its neighbouring countries.
On Monday 25 February there will be commemoration events around the country for the victims of communism. On this day in 1947 Béla Kovács, General Secretary of the Independent Smallholders’ Party, was unlawfully arrested and later deported to the Soviet Union. In 2000 a resolution adopted by the first Orbán government stipulated that on this day commemorations should take place in every secondary school in the country. This year the Hungarian government’s official commemoration event will take place at 7 p.m. on Monday, at the Buda end of the Chain Bridge.
In Brussels on Tuesday the agreement on the Unified Patent Court (UPC) was signed; thus a process on creation of a unified European patent system which has spanned five decades has come to fruition – at present with the participation of twenty-five EU Member States.
On Tuesday, Foreign Minister János Martonyi received Slovak Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Miroslav Lajčák, who accompanied the President of Slovakia, Ivan Gašparovič, on his two-day visit to Budapest.
Around half a million residents of 150 communities will have access to pure, controlled and healthy drinking water as a result of the work done by the Ministry of Defence and the Hungarian Defence Forces. This announcement was made on February 19 at Medgyesegyháza-Bánkút during the handover of the first complex, containerized water purification and dispenser device.
The agreement on unified patent jurisdiction was signed in Brussels and thus the final stage of the five-decade long process aimed at establishing a unified European patent system has been completed, for the time being with the participation of 25 countries.
The Bundestag’s Tourism Committee of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Sport and Tourism Committee of the Hungarian Parliament held talks on deepening traditionally good tourism relations between the two countries. Representatives of the Ministry for National Economy and professional organizations on behalf of domestic tourism enterprises also participated at the forum organized by the Bundestag, the Hungarian Embassy in Berlin, the Sport and Tourism Committee of Hungary’s National Assembly and the German representation of Hungarian Tourism Plc.
The Hungarian-Macedonian Joint Economic Committee started a two-day meeting in Budapest on Tuesday. State secretary for Foreign Affairs and External Economic Relations Péter Szijjártó stated that the committee decided that areas of bilateral cooperation include energy, transport, farm and tourism sectors.
The Workgroup on reducing public utility charges including gas and electricity, water, sewage, refuse collection and chimney sweeping, held its first session today.
Administration State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Iván Bába opened the Ministry's new simulative training centre on February 18.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán presented two Lebanese businessmen with the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary for the development of Hungarian-Lebanese relations. Mr. Orbán emphasized that Hungary understands the East's message, and so has many prestigious friends in the East.
While the budget for the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has decreased by some 11%, Hungary will be receiving 12.3 billion euros in agriculture funding within the next financial framework for 2014-2020, compared to 10.4 billion euros in the current period. Hungary's share of the CAP budget has therefore increased from 2.36% to 3.19% for the upcoming financial period.