Interview with Deputy Foreign Minister Ignacio Higueras Hare of Peru

At the end of October, Peruvian Deputy Foreign Minister Ignacio Higueras Hare visited Hungary to participate in bilateral meetings at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a lecture at the Diplomatic Academy. He was also offered a reception at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The Deputy Minister also took time to meet the editor-in-chief of Daily News Hungary for a short interview.

Deputy Minister Higueras said that the reason for his working trip to Budapest was to hold discussions with Hungarian partners in the framework of the second mechanism of political consultations between the two countries. The Vice-minister informed that he had two meetings with Hungarian hosts.

With State Secretaries Levente Magyar and Tamás Menczer, bilateral, regional and global issues were discussed. The Peruvian Deputy Minister underlined the excellent relationship between the two countries, and the relevance of both having resident embassies in Lima and Budapest, which is a very strong foundation for the relationship.

Another positive steps forward in Peruvian-Hungarian relations were the meeting of the Presidents of the two countries during the UN General Assembly, while Hungary’s Foreign Minister visited Lima in September 2022 during his trip to South America.

Peru, a new OECD member

During the meetings in Budapest the most recent bilateral agreements on water management, sports and cooperation between diplomatic academies were reviewed. Progress was also made in the discussions to increase exports and imports between Peru and Hungary. The Peruvian deputy minister said that it is important to maintain the bilateral exchange at high level without prejudice of the great relevance of the work of the embassy in promoting trade and investment, as well as culture and tourism in complement to the political relationship. He added that they are counting on the good results achieved here to make Hungarians more aware of Peruvian values.

Higueras said that Peru has a very strong relation with the EU, in cooperation, economic and political matters. He added that the EU is a large and valuable market for Peru, and that is why the South American country is seeking to further strengthening economic relations with European partners, including the expansion of trade with Hungary. He said that the visa waiver for Peruvian citizens within the Schengen area was a huge step forward. With the Hungarian side, European Union issues, the Hungarian presidency of the EU, the Global Gateway initiative, and the fight against drugs, among other topics were also discussed

The Hungarian side showed great interest in the developments in Latin America and in their integration processes such as the Pacific Alliance, where Hungary is an observer state.

Peru’s accession to the OECD was also discussed. The South American country is in the process of fully complying with the requirements of the OECD, but there is still a long road ahead, where members will have the final say. Peru will remain open to discuss with Hungary about any concerns its government may have about Peru´s progress, as this is one of the main goals the country wishes to achieve in a near future.