Hungarian FM holds talks with Romanian, Croatian counterpart in NY

In meetings with his Romanian and Croatian counterparts on the sidelines of the 72nd UN General Assembly in New York, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said that Hungary will “always stand up for the interests of Hungary and ethnic Hungarians”.

Meeting with Romanian FM

Speaking on the phone on Wednesday, Szijjártó noted that

a Catholic school mainly attended by Hungarian students has been closed down in Tirgu Mures(Marosvásárhely), Romania.

Over a hundred Hungarian children were forced to start the school year at a different school, he said.

The Hungarian state is blocking Romania’s membership bid in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) until the problem is solved, he said. The situation is “disappointing”, Szijjártó said, because Romanian-Hungarian relations have lately shown promising developments.

The solution depends exclusively on political will on Romania’s side, Szijjártó said.

Hungary expects the Romanian government to undertake the steps necessary to reopen the school and to “rein in any nationalistic outbursts”, he said.

Hungary takes its lead from the local community and Catholic church in the issue, Szijjártó said. When the Hungarian community and the church in Tirgu Mures regard the situation as solved, Hungary will act accordingly, he said.

Croatian FM talks with Szijjártó

Commenting on the meeting with Croatian foreign minister Marija Pejcinovic Buric, Szijjártó noted that an international arbitration court has dismissed a lawsuit brought by the Croatian government Hungarian against oil and gas company MOL.

The Croatian government has been trying to buy back MOL’s shares in Croatian peer INA.

Croatia chose to ignore the court ruling, Szijjártó said. The OECD is based on honouring such decisions, and

Hungary will not support Croatia’s OECD bid until that issue is settled, Szijjártó said.

Photo: MTI

Source: MTI