Hungarian foreign minister warns against politicising nature protection

Addressing the Sustainability Expo in Thailand on Thursday, Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s minister of foreign affairs and trade, warned against taking a political or ideological approach to the issue of nature protection.

“We should not allow any political party or political movement to monopolise this issue,” Szijjártó told the event in Bangkok, according to a video uploaded to his Facebook page. Monopolising the green cause will cost it its credibility, the minister said, adding that “we have to fulfil all of our obligations and commitments when it comes to the green agenda.”

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Szijjártó said he was proud to represent the country that had been the first European Union member state to ratify the Paris climate agreement and the seventh in the world to pass the principle of climate neutrality into law. Concerning Hungary’s climate goals, Szijjártó noted that the country aims to cut its CO2 emissions by 40 percent by 2030. He said Hungary was among the few countries to have achieved economic growth while reducing its harmful emissions.

Meanwhile, the minister said Hungary ranked 21st in terms of the fulfilment of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. Taking into consideration Europe’s ongoing energy crisis, Hungary’s green commitments and its geographical position, the solution for Hungary is a combination of nuclear and solar energy, Szijjártó said. Nuclear and solar energy, he said, can guarantee a country’s energy independence and protect it from the “irrational volatility of prices on the international energy market”.

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Hungary has had positive experiences using nuclear energy over the last 40 years, Szijjártó said, noting that it was a cheap, safe and sustainable energy source. It is for this reason that the government has decided to build a new nuclear power plant which is expected to be operational by 2030.

Szijjártó also called for speeding up the development of solar energy infrastructure, noting the Hungarian government’s support for the installation of solar panels. The minister called attention to Hungary’s stand at the expo which features innovative solar energy and water management solutions.

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Source: MTI