FM Szijjártó: Hungary rejects extreme ideologies

Hungary approves of the green transition as a way to “preserve the planet for our descendants”, but it objects to green ideologies that kowtow to “fanatical climate activists”, Péter Szijjártó, the foreign minister, said in a speech to the India-Europe Business and Sustainability Conclave in New Delhi on Wednesday.

Economic development and environmental protection should coincide, he said, adding that tipping this balance either way was harmful.

Hungary is among twenty countries that has managed to raise its economic game while reducing harmful emissions; by 32 percent compared with the 1990 level, the minister said.

Szijjártó highlighted Hungary’s “pragmatic approach and common sense” to environmental considerations.

At a panel discussion on the circular economy, he said the green transition must be shepherded in a way that does not imperil the security of energy supply.

Szijjártósaid European demand for electricity was set to increase by 50 percent by 2030, with heating, cooling and transport taking up more and more electricity resources.

So, producing cheap electricity in large quantities in a sustainable way, he said, was vitally important, and only nuclear energy was up to the task.

With the expansion of Hungary’s sole nuclear power plant in Paks, around 70 percent of Hungary’s electricity needs will be met by Paks, while 17 million tonnnes of carbon dioxide emissions would be cut each year, 1.5 times the emissions of the domestic transport sector.

The circular economy is a strategic goal, he said, adding that storage as well as production of green energy was a key issue. Electric battery production, he added, was therefore crucial.

Hungary, the minister said, was without exaggeration “a global leader”, ranked fourth in the world in this respect, and would soon rise to second place now that five of the world’s ten largest manufacturers have committed themselves to investments in Hungary.

When it comes to sustainable management of natural and mineral resources, Hungary is ready for closer cooperation with Indian partners, he said.

Read also:

• Hungarian FM: Hungary’s to be ‘most pro-enlargement EU presidency of all time’
• No surprise, Hungary also criticises the 13th EU sanctions package against Russia