Szijjártó: Hungary building comprehensive strategic partnership with Chad

Hungary is building a comprehensive strategic partnership with Chad encompassing the areas of defence, the economy and education, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in Budapest on Monday, adding that this would further strengthen the country’s stabilising role in the Sahel.

Szijjártó talks about partnership with Chad

At a joint press conference with counterpart Abderaman Koulamallah, Szijjártó highlighted the Chadian president’s “historic” first-time visit to Hungary.

“We’re talking about two countries that devote special attention to preserving their sovereignty, two countries that take a clear stand for peace,” Szijjártó said, according to a ministry statement. He said both countries believed that wars should be settled with negotiation rather than weapons.

Szijjártó said armed conflicts have caused serious challenges for both Hungary and Chad in recent years, and both countries rejected any steps in international politics that risked escalation in the ongoing conflicts.

He said Europe faced a number of security challenges, with one of the main ones being illegal migration along with the growing threat of terrorism that was closely related to it. He said illegal migration into the European Union could not be stopped without cooperation with the Sahel region.

“We know full well the importance of the stabilising role Chad plays in this critical region of Africa, so it is also as the country holding the rotating presidency of the European Union that we do our part in developing the cooperation between the European Union and the Sahel, as well as in stopping illegal migration,” he said, adding that Hungary was building a strategic partnership with Chad.