Opening towards the Arab world is an important element of Hungarian foreign policy, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told his counterpart Najib Mikati in Beirut on Thursday. "There can be no stability in the region without a stable Lebanon", he added.

The Hungarian Prime Minister is currently on an official visit in Lebanon, where he also met with the President of Lebanon Michel Suleiman and Speaker of the Parliament Nabih Berri. The Hungarian delegation also includes, amongst others, Minister of Defence Csaba Hende, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and External Economic Relations Péter Szijjártó and Minister of State for National Economy Zoltán Cséfalvay, as well as 36 Hungarian businessmen.

Hungary considers Lebanon as a key player in the Arab world, that is open to developing business ties, the Prime Minister told a press conference. He also stated that within the European Union Hungary is an advocate of Lebanese stability and will propose that the issue be put on the agenda of the April meeting of EU foreign ministers.

Prime Minister Mikati highlighted that the situation in the Middle East, including the flood of Syrian refugees to Lebanon, was also discussed at their meeting. He stressed the need to achieve political peace in Syria as soon as possible.

(Prime Minister’s Office/MTI)