Erdogan’s wow: Turkey remains a safe background to Hungary’s energy security

Photo: MTI

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán held bilateral talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, the PM’s press chief said on Friday.

The two leaders agreed that the summit of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS), held in the Uzbek city in the past days, had been successful. Orbán said that despite the war in Ukraine, Turkey and Hungary will not give up their joint goals. “We are committed to strengthening bilateral trade and economic ties, and we will expand military cooperation,” Orbán said.

Erdogan wowed Turkey would “remain a safe background to Hungary’s energy security”. Orbán and Erdogan agreed that the war should be concluded with an immediate ceasefire and peace talks.

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Hungary’s foreign minister: Turkey ‘strategic partner’

Hungary views Turkey as a strategic partner politically and when it comes to trade and economic cooperation, Péter Szijjártó, the foreign minister, said on Friday. Bilateral trade turnover last year approached 4 billion dollars, a record high, Szijjártó said on Facebook after reviewing economic cooperation with Trade Minister Mehmet Mus ahead of a Hungary-Turkey economic joint committee session in December.

He noted that both countries are building nuclear power facilities with the same technology, adding that this may open up a new area of cooperation. The only east-west gas pipeline running at full capacity in Europe passes through Turkey, ensuring the security of Hungary’s energy supply, the minister said, adding that Turkey’s energy security role had grown significantly.

With one of the most open economies in the world, free trade is vital to Hungary, Szijjártó said. “We have an interest in the customs union between the European Union and Turkey working smoothly.”