Human resources minister: US State Dept takes new approach to US-Hungary ties

Relations between the United States and Hungary are heading in the right direction, Human Resources Minister Zoltán Balog quoted US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson as saying after a brief exchange with him at a prayer breakfast in Washington, DC on Thursday.

Balog is on a four-day visit to Washington, where he has held talks with US lawmakers, attended the annual National Prayer Breakfast and opened an exhibition about persecuted Christians in the Middle East.

Speaking to MTI, Balog quoted Tillerson as saying that a series of new appointments in the State Department had brought about a change in the department’s approach to Hungary.

On the topic of the Hungarian government’s efforts taken to protect persecuted Christians, Balog said Hungary and the US have developed a close working relationship in this area. The US has shown a growing interest in all that Hungary has been doing for persecuted Christians, he said.

Hungary has pledged to help Christians in the Middle East, but rather than donate to international organisations, it directly aids Christian communities that want to stay in the region instead of fleeing and becoming refugees, Balog said.

“We’ve been contacted by specific American organisations asking us to share our experiences with them,” the minister said.