August 20 – PM’s Office: Hungary given opportunity to rebuild alliances

The past 30 years provided the Hungarian nation with an opportunity to rebuild its alliances on a basis of mutual respect and shared values and “to ensure a place for central Europe on the maps of Europe and of the world”, Gergely Gulyás, the head of the Hungarian Prime Minister’s Office said in Cluj (Kolozsvár) late on Tuesday.

Speaking ahead of a gala evening marking Hungary’s August 20 national holiday, Gulyás said cooperation within central Europe now has “an obvious influence on European decision making”.

He went on to say that “many do not like that; they are interested in maintaining century-old conflicts”, and added that “there will be no winners” of provocative actions against Romania’s Hungarian minority, but “Hungarians and Romanians could both become losers”.

Concerning Saint Stephen’s Day, Gulyás said that it is a holiday of “hopes come true” for Hungarians.

King Stephen’s work helped Hungarians through a thousand years to the 21st century, helping the nation survive attacks and occupations by foreign powers, as well as “our own mistakes and sins”.

Gulyás said that culture was a crucial instrument for Hungarian communities to survive. “Culture brings people together, it builds communities and creates high standards, it drives eyes in the same direction and opens up ears and hearts to hear the most important issues,” he said.

Source: MTI