National identity, sovereignty preconditions for the nation’s survival

Hungary’s national identity and sovereignty are “not just parts of its history” but “crucial preconditions” for the nation’s survival, Zsolt Németh, the head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee, told a conference on links between the Visegrád countries and Israel in Budapest on Wednesday.

In his address, Németh called Israel “an outpost of democracy in the Middle East” in an environment which “lacks European values which are fundamental for building democracy”.

Németh also confirmed the Hungarian government’s commitment to ensuring protection for Hungary’s Jewish community.

Eytan Gilboa, head of the Israel Public Diplomacy Forum, said that the European Union, and especially Germany and France failed to understand developments in the Middle East and declined to cooperate with Israel. That is why, he said, cooperation with the Visegrád countries — Hungary, Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic — could be useful.

The conference was organised by the Századveg Foundation and the Israel Public Diplomacy Forum.

Source: MTI