Hungary is “not only talking about but also acting for peace and security in the Western Balkans”, Defence Minister Tibor Benkő said during a visit to NATO’s KFOR mission in Kosovo on Friday.
The minister said he was proud that for the first time, a Hungarian general had become commander of KFOR, NATO’s largest mission, in Pristina earlier in the day.
Ferenc Kajári, a major general of the Hungarian armed forces, took over the command of NATO’s KFOR mission in a formal ceremony in Pristina on Friday.
Kajári, the first Hungarian to serve as a KFOR commander overseeing troops from 20 NATO and 8 partner countries, will fulfill his duties from November 1 over a period of 12 months.
Addressing the ceremony, Kajári called it a great honour to serve in the post and stated his commitment towards continuing the work of Franco Federici, his predecessor.
Kajári said KFOR is the largest force in the region capable and ready to respond and intervene in the interest of resolving security concerns, adding that his task
as KFOR chief will be working towards resolving any conflicts in the region peacefully.
Kajári served on international missions before, first in IFOR in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1996 and later as an EU adviser to the African Union’s mission to Sudan. He worked later in northern Afghanistan as chief of reconnaissance.
Defence ministers and deputy ministers of Visegrád Group countries held the first joint V4 defence ministerial meeting in Erdőbénye, in northeastern Hungary, on Friday to discuss military and defence policy issues, the challenges of hybrid warfare and planned cooperation in military health care.
Hungary’s Tibor Benkő told a press conference after the meeting that the defence ministerial programme for Hungary’s V4 presidency had been discussed and action plans had been approved for coordinating various procedures.
The importance of national defence capabilities was discussed with Slovak counterpart Jaroslav Nad, Polish deputy minister Wojciech Skurkiewicz and Czech deputy minister Jan Havranek, he said.
The strength of the defence system rests on nation states and national army development programmes are also built on them, he added.
Each country pays special attention to hybrid warfare, including cyber operations, and there was consensus about the importance of maintaining a system of reservists, he said.
The Hungarian, Slovak, Czech and Polish delegations reviewed the experiences to be drawn from the Afghanistan mission and each of the four countries stated that they paid special attention to participation in African missions, such as the Takuba operations. The sides were also in agreement about the importance of maintaining peace in the Western Balkans which is also a priority for Hungary, he added.
Nad said the past 18 months revealed the importance of the army’s medical efforts and thanked Benkő for Hungary’s sending experts to Slovakia.
Havranek said the meeting confirmed that V4 cooperation was working well and while the V4’s joint efforts aim to promote an independent Europe, the participants do not want to weaken transatlantic ties either.
“We are living in an age full of dangers, and as we face migration, we need an effective, well-functioning army because we would not be able to protect our borders without the soldiers”, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told public broadcaster Kossuth Rádió on Friday morning. He added that Hungary had received very little money from Brussels for border protection.
Regarding the gas deal signed with Russia’s Gazprom earlier this week, Orbán praised the foreign ministry and the negotiating delegation for achieving lower prices than those in the previous contract of 1995. Orbán also lauded the “fairness” of the Russian partners in “concluding an agreement worthy of reliable partners who respect each other’s interests”.
“The truth is we need gas, and issues of energy supply and energy security should not be conflated with political criticism against Russia,”
he said.
Regarding Ukraine’s statements that Hungary was violating the Hungarian-Ukrainian intergovernmental treaty by agreeing to delivery routes shunning Ukraine, Orbán said Hungary could “unfortunately” not take those protests into account. “I respect Ukraine and wish the Ukrainian people much success, but as regards the matter of gas, we have to consider the intersts of Hungarians rather than Ukrainians,” he said.
Concerning yesterday’s cabinet meeting focusing on Hungary’s defence industry developments at a military base in Hajmáskér, in western Hungary, Orbán said it reviewed defence industry development and
the army’s technological development,
as well as the situation of the recruitment, training and supplies of troops. Decisions on further military developments in 2022 were also made, he said.
In connection with the coronavirus pandemic in Hungary, the prime minister said the government had prepared for a fourth wave, noting that the country has 17 million doses of vaccines on stock. He asked Hungarians to get inoculated, stressing that herd immunity was not an option with “this type of virus – it will seek out those who are not vaccinated”. “The risk is in being unvaccinated, not in getting a jab,” Orbán said.
When coming to power in 2010, the Fidesz-Christian Democrat government had to scrap that practice and fight international companies and Brussels to freeze utility prices, Orbán said. “This is how we got to a point where our household gas prices are the cheapest in the European Union, and household electricity prices the second cheapest,” he said. Hungary has achieved all this without having its own energy resources, he noted.
“Meanwhile, Western Europe is seeing price hikes we couldn’t imagine,”
Aero Vodochody, a Czech manufacturer of light combat and training aircraft, has been acquired by HSC Aerojet, in which the Hungarian investor Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky holds an 80 percent stake and Czech company Omnipol owns 20 percent, the website of local business daily E15 said on Thursday.
HSC Aerojet’s acquisition of 100 percent of Aero Vodochody, which includes the Vodochody airport, was based on a contract signed in July.
With the change in ownership, Vodochody head Dieter John has been replaced by Viktor Sotona, the chief executive of Omnipol group member ERA, which makes surveillance and reconnaissance technology.
“Aero will continue to develop all three pillars of its business: development and
production of its own aircraft,
repair and maintenance of aircraft, and the aerostructures programme,” Sotona said.
The Penta Group bought Aero Vodochody when it was privatised in 2007.
Experts of the British army found the unique, multi-purpose Gepárd GM6 Lynx to be the most suitable rifle in all respects.
The Special Air Service unit of the British army has been armed with Gepárd GM6 Lynx sniper rifles which are designed and manufactured entirely in Hungary, writes Mandiner. The Special Air Service is the most important and most valuable special forces unit in the British Army. A relatively small, secretly operating, but all the more well-known armed force. The unit specialises in many roles, including counter-terrorism, hostage rescue, direct action and covert reconnaissance. It is recognised as one of the best trained military units in the world.
Even though the Hungarian-made semi-automatic rifle only weighs 13 kilograms and its entire length is less than 1.2 meters long, it is so powerful that
it can blast helicopters out of the sky with a single shot and destroy armoured vehicles, troop carriers, light shelters and buildings,
According to the official GM6 Lynx website, this rifle combines the strengths of sniper rifles, combat rifles and anti-material weapons and has a shooting range of 2000 m+. It can fire five .50-calibre Raufoss Mk2 bullets in less than three seconds and has a muzzle energy of 14.5 kJ, which is 5−8 times greater than in the case of conventional small arms. The muzzle velocity of GM6 Lynx is in the range of 780−820 m/s and the barrel retracts like an artillery gun back into the body of the rifle to absorb the massive recoil.
Although this .50-calibre semi-automatic rifle is powerful, it is easy to carry, suitable for use by land and air forces and ideal for parachuting into the battlefield.
Photo: gm6lynx.com
“The GM6 is fantastic. It’s like going into battle carrying an artillery piece. The troops call it the Howitzer [a large ranged weapon that stands between an artillery gun and a mortar]. It’s an absolutely massive punch,” a member of the Special Forces explained the rifle’s devastating impact.
The Special Air Service, Special Boat Service and the Special Reconnaissance Regiment have bought 150 of the £9,000 rifle (~EUR 10,481), which means that
a total of €1,580,000 worth of weapons have been purchased.
They wanted to kill PM Viktor Orbán, Chief Medical Officer Cecília Müller, and even opposition leaders like Klára Dobrev. The public prosecutors say that planning to kill public figures is a crime against the state.
As MTI reported on Tuesday, two leaders of a group calling themselves the Responsible National Government of Hungarians are charged with committing a crime against the state. The suspects were taken into custody because it appeared that they were making preparations to carry out assassinations, the prosecutor said in a statement. The suspects drafted a self-styled “new constitution” and operated a semi-secret organisation via social media, according to the charges.
They also expressed anti-Semitic views and took concrete action “to forcibly change the constitutional order”.
In addition, members of the group attending meetings in person and on the internet were urged “to assassinate public figures”.
According to Magyar Nemzet, Áron K. and Imre Posta of the ultraradical, far-right, and anti-Semitic group
might receive 20 years in prison.
According to the prosecutors, they prepared not only for murder but also for forcibly altering the constitutional order. According to the Hungarian criminal code, the former’s penalty is 1-5 years in prison while the latter’s is 5-20 years or even life imprisonment.
Based on media information, the group assembled lists of public figures they wanted to kill. At their meetings, they named the people and published the lists. However, they did not start preparations for the assassinations. If the latter had happened, they should probably expect a life sentence. The court ordered their pre-trial detention for 30 days because of the severity of their planned actions. In the group, Áron K.’s task was to reorganise the state’s new judiciary system, while Imre Posta would have done that in the executive branch. The suspects wrote a new constitution and
spread their views on social media.
Imre Posta (52) graduated as a chemical protection engineer and acquired a degree in Psychology in 1998 at the University of Debrecen. He served as a soldier for years, worked there as a company commander, psychologist, and laboratory leader. In 2006, he was dismissed with immediate effect from the Hungarian Executive Protection Service.
The military drill is on the training ground in Várpalota. Hungarian defence minister Tibor Benkő and army chief Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi talked about their experience after they visited it.
According to honvedelem.hu, the defence minister congratulated the soldiers for the successful ability integration practice. He said that in the last 1.5 years, the Hungarian military helped to deal with the coronavirus epidemic, protected the border fence in the South to prevent illegal migration, and served in the hospitals. But they were eager to use military equipment again.
Hungary launched a military development program in 2017 aiming to build a modern, strong and convincing army by 2028
– he added.
During the drill, soldiers prepare to use Panzerhaubitze 2000, a self-propelled howitzer, which Hungary bought from Germany.
MTI/Tamás VasváriMTI/Tamás Vasvári
Romulusz Dr Ruszin-Szendi lieutenant general, the chief of the Hungarian Army, said that their goal is to train the future operators of the military vehicles not only individually, but also together in the level of batteries and battalions. He highlighted that the development program had made good progress, and the soldiers did everything they could to acquire the knowledge to use the new equipment professionally. “Artillerymen, tankers, shooters, helicopter and Gripen pilots work to practice cooperation with live ammunition” – he added.
Hungary’s government will discuss defence industry developments at a cabinet meeting at a military base in Hajmáskér,
in western Hungary, on Thursday, the press chief of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said. The meeting led by Orbán will focus on reviewing the progress of the army’s development programme, Bertalan Havasi said. After the meeting, the prime minister and the members of his government will observe military exercises at the base, he added.
MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Benko Vivien Cher
Before, in a NATO session Benkő said that
each nation has a duty to guarantee its own security.
The defence minister noted that it was commonly accepted that NATO, which Hungary joined in 1999, “will protect us”. But NATO’s capability depends on the individual capabilities of its members, he added. NATO’s founding treaty, Article 3 of the Washington Treaty, states that each member of the alliance has a duty to build and maintain the strength and capability in the service of its own defence and that of the alliance, he noted.
MTI/Tamás Vasvári
Benkő said NATO had two vulnerable flanks: to the east and to the south. Hungary, he added, was affected from both directions, and this was the reason why the government in 2016 established the aim for Hungary to have a strong, capable army equipped with the latest military equipment, with dedicated and loyal soldiers serving their country.
Hungary’s government considers it important to boost the country’s defence capabilities and will therefore spend 30 percent more resources on defence in 2022 than this year, state secretary at the Foreign Ministry Tamás Menczer said in Nagykovácsi on Saturday.
Speaking at the opening of a festival of military culture, Menczer emphasised the need for a strong Hungarian defence because “we live in dangerous times. In addition to the pandemic, we are exposed to the danger of illegal mass migration, which we must defend ourselves against.”
Since the 2015 migration crisis, terrorists with a migrant background have murdered more than 300 innocent people in Europe and injured over 1,300, he said.
Tamás Menczer at the VII. festival of military culture in Zsámbék
Photo: MTI/Mohai Balázs
VII. festival of military culture in Zsámbék
Photo: MTI/Mohai Balázs
VII. festival of military culture in Zsámbék
Photo: MTI/Mohai Balázs
This is an issue of the present and the past, Menczer said, as the international coalition’s withdrawal from Afghanistan has turned the country into a potential source of mass migration, from which 4 million internally displaced people are already on their way.
Half of the country’s population of 40 million lives on humanitarian aid, and millions and tens of millions could decide at any time to start off towards Europe because of their living conditions, he warned.
Hungary’s defence spending will exceed 1,000 billion forints (€ 2.8 billion) for the first time next year, about half of which will be spent on developments, the state secretary said.
VII. festival of military culture in Zsámbék
Photo: MTI/Mohai Balázs
VII. festival of military culture in Zsámbék
Photo: MTI/Mohai Balázs
VII. festival of military culture in Zsámbék
Photo: MTI/Mohai Balázs
Hungary will meet its NATO commitment to spend 2 percent of its GDP on defence expenditures by 2024 at the latest, he added. And we started meeting the commitment to spend 20 percent of the defence budget on developments already five years before the deadline, Menczer said.
Compared to 2010, the amount of spending on defence and development of the military forces will more than triple next year, the state secretary said.
Each nation has a duty to guarantee its own security, the defence minister said at a session of the Hungarian Atlantic Council (MAT) on Thursday.
Tibor Benkő noted it was commonly accepted that NATO, which Hungary joined in 1999, “will protect us”. But NATO’s capability depends on the individual capabilities of its members, he added. NATO’s founding treaty, Article 3 of the Washington Treaty, states that each member of the alliance has a duty to build and maintain the strength and capability in the service of its own defence and that of the alliance, he noted.
Benkő said
NATO had two vulnerable flanks:
to the east and to the south. Hungary, he added, was affected from both directions, and this was the reason why the government in 2016 established the aim for Hungary to have a strong, capable army equipped with the latest military equipment, with dedicated and loyal soldiers serving their country.
Meanwhile, FM Péter Szijjártó said in New York that the world must join forces to fight the coronavirus pandemic. But it requires cooperation based on mutual trust and respect, he added. According to a statement from the foreign ministry, Szijjártó attended an online event organised on the sidelines of the 76th United Nations General Assembly, and highlighted the close interdependence between countries, which the past 18 months of the pandemic had highlighted. He said
the virus was a common enemy, and cooperation in the areas of health care and medical research was a shared interest.
“Vaccines save lives,” he said, adding that ideological or political approaches to various medical products should be rejected. On another subject, he said that Hungary had felt the impact of conflicts between East and West throughout history, and called for a pragmatic cooperation between the two sides.
The Lynx combat vehicle factory might possibly be the flagship of the rebuilding of the defense industry in Hungary. The factory which is currently undergoing its construction in Zalaegerszeg is completely in line with the goal of the Hungarian Government, – said László Palkovics, the Hungarian Minister of Innovation and Technology during the topping out celebration of the factory.
The plant is a joint venture of HUF 60 billion (€ 173 million) between the Hungarian state and the German Rheinmetall defence industry giant. László Palkovics also highlighted that the plant is important for many reasons. It will be a vital basis for the Hungarian defence industry.
Not only will it provide an important uplifting factor for the economy in general, but the factory creates up to 500 new workplaces.
Additionally, it plays a crucial role in the development of Hungary’s vehicle industry and its pursuit of innovation and development.
The Minister of Innovation and Technology added, that the modernisation of the Hungarian Defence Force requires cutting-edge technologies and an arms or defence industry. According to the minister, with similar investments such as the Lynx factory, Hungary’s armed forces might become influential in the region by 2030.
Lynx armoured infantry fighting vehicle Photo: MTI/Varga György
“The plant producing infantry fighting vehicles also contributes to being able to spend 2% of Hungary’s GDP on defence development,” – László Palkovics said.
Tibor Benkő Defence Minister said that the Hungarian government recreated the Hungarian defence industry and the plant in Zala county will become the symbol of a ‘xhange of era’. From 2023, one of the most modern and cutting-edge armoured combat vehicles will be manufactured in Hungary in Zalaegerszeg and thanks to the nearby ZalaZone testing field, a complex development process can be realised.
Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, the Commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces
Photo: MTI/Varga György
Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall
Photo: MTI/Varga György
László Palkovics Minister of Innovation and Technology (r) and Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall
Photo: MTI/Varga György
“The safety of its citizens bears the utmost importance for the Hungarian government, but it can only be fulfilled if the Hungarian Defence Forces become a major force in the region,” – Tibor Benkő emphasised.
The commander of the Hungarian Defence Forces, Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi explained that the Hungarian Defence Force could become a driving force of the modernisation of the development of armed forces, innovation and educational development.
Gáspár Maróth said that the HUF 60 billion (€ 173 million) worth of joint venture between Hungary and the German Rheinmetall defence industry giant is an exemplary enterprise. The CEO of Rheinmetall, Armin Papperger thanked the Hungarian contractors and the government for their tireless work in the past period.
The plant is being built on 2.5 hectares and the factory will have a footprint of 25,000 m2, while the tallest point of the building will be 20.5 metres high.
The armoured vehicle plant Photo: MTI/Varga György
“We need to prevent a terrorist threat and further migration waves”, said the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
The last US military planes left Afghanistan yesterday, bringing an end to a 20-year-long war. The Taliban hailed their victory with gunfire after the troops exited the country. The situation escalated very quickly in the past two weeks. The Taliban took over and are working on reorganising Afghanistan and returning to the old rules, where they had left off 20 years ago.
Afghan people desperately tried to flee the country in this transitional time, giving Europe a real reason to worry about another migration crisis.
Moreover, Afghanistan’s destabilisation could directly endanger Turkey’s safety. Back in April, when US President Joe Biden announced their withdrawal, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his willingness to start a new mission in order to avoid it. As the Hungarian government seeks to strengthen its military cooperation with Turkey, the Prime Minister already indicated its possible future involvement.
Now that Afghanistan is in the hands of the Taliban again, the question resurfaces. Index.hu asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade about the mission jointly planned with Turkey and Pakistan.
“There is an ongoing coordination process about the prevention of mass migration and terrorist threat after the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan”,
they answered.
The original plans of joint Hungarian-Turkish-Pakistani cooperation were rejected when the Taliban took control over the country’s capital, Kabul. Turkish President Erdogan, however, thought otherwise. The next day he announced that Ankara would still be open for cooperation, involving prolonging the military mission and taking part in the armed defence of the Kabul Airport.
The tragic terrorist attack at the Kabul Airport last week, claiming the lives of almost 200 people, means that the Islamic State managed to strengthen its base in Afghanistan.
It could pose a significant risk to the safety of not only the neighbouring countries but indirectly to Europe, as well.
Western military help might mitigate the situation for which the involvement of Turkey can be an accepted scenario both by the United States and the Taliban.
When asked whether the government’s standpoint changed since April and
Hungarian soldiers would join the Turkish mission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade did not reject the possibility.
They wrote: “The withdrawal of NATO troops from Afghanistan coins several serious questions when it comes to the future safety of Afghanistan and Europe. The gravest among those is the danger of a new migration wave caused by the spread of terrorism.
This terrorist threat and new migration waves need to be prevented.
The necessary steps to do so are currently being negotiated and cooperated. However, there is no decision for now.”
Some 120,000 spectators visited the International Air Show and Military Display in Kecskemét, central Hungary, over the weekend, the defence ministry said on Sunday evening.
The event was opened at 7am by Defence Minister Tibor Benkő and Hungarian army chief Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi both on Saturday and Sunday, the ministry said in a statement.
In addition to presentations by the air forces of Hungary and several foreign countries, the programme included surprise events including a parachute jump performed by the defence minister, the army chief and other army leaders from a helicopter.
International Air Show and Military Display in Kecskemét, 2021. Photo: MTI
A family of military handguns developed fully by Hungarian engineers was also presented. Visitors also had a chance to see the cabin of Soyuz 36 in which Bertalan Farkas, Hungary’s first cosmonaut, travelled back to Earth on a space mission in 1980.
Hungary cannot be strong without a strong army, Defence Minister Tibor Benkő said at the opening event of the annual International Air Show and Military Display in Kecskemét, central Hungary, on Saturday.
The event will showcase the hardware and development of the Armed Forces, and highlight the training and the skills of Hungarian troops dedicated to serve their country, he said.
“The government’s army development programme is making it possible for us to live in calm, peace and security,” Benkő said.
He noted that during the pandemic, Hungarian troops had steadfastly supported the protection efforts.
Benkő praised troops serving on missions in Afghanistan, saying “the past days showed what Hungarian soldiers are capable of when left to their own devices”.
In terms of the armed forces, the defence minister noted that the number of troops had grown by 15 percent since 2016, with over 11,000 volunteer reservists serving currently.
Major General Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, the commander of the Hungarian Armed Forces, thanked all the air show’s visitors, saying national awareness and support “is worth more than any wages”, and thanked the government for its support.
Swedish Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist, and Gáspár Maróth, the government commissioner for defence development have also attended the event, among other dignitaries.
Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer opened an office in Budapest on Friday.
Welcoming the opening, the government commissioner for defence development noted that Embraer is
one of Brazil’s largest companies
and is a leading aircraft manufacturer in South America.
“The fact that this company has opened its European engineering office in Hungary is of paramount importance for Hungary’s industrial development,” Gáspár Maróth said. He noted that Embraer manufactures aircraft for civilian and military use and the company will involve its new Budapest office in engineering design.
“This represents a technological leap in the Hungarian aviation industry unseen before,”
Jackson Schneider, the chairman-CEO of Embraer Defense and Security, said the opening marked “a special day” for the company. The Budapest office plays an important role in the company’s expansion and strengthening its presence, he said, noting future possibilities in engineering, technological, research and development cooperation.
The Hungarian army concluded an agreement with Embraer
to purchase two KC-390 military transport aircraft in November last year.
The first of the airplanes is scheduled to arrive in Hungary in late 2023 and the second in early 2024, Maróth said.
The Hungarian Armed Forces has evacuated altogether 540 people from Afghanistan, including all Hungarian citizens known to be in the country, Hungarian Defence Minister Tibor Benkő said on Thursday.
Besides Hungarian citizens, the Hungarian forces have also transported US, Austrian and Afghan citizens in a seven-day operation started on August 19, he told a press conference.
All Hungarians requesting assistance were brought back to Hungary, as were all Afghan citizens who had cooperated with the Hungarian armed forces over its 18-year deployment and requested evacuation “on time”, Benkő said.
Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, Commander of the Hungarian Armed Forces, said the “Hungarian soldiers have written history” in managing an “evacuation operation with unparallelled challenges in recent history”.
The government ordered the evacuation of Hungarian citizens on August 17, and the army’s resources were scrambled by the afternoon the next day. The operation started early on August 19, he added.
A convoy taking 114 Afghan refugees who fled Taliban retribution because they cooperated with Hungary in Afghanistan left the Liszt Ferenc International Aisport in Budapest and will be transported to migrant facilities in Röszke and Tompa, the interior ministry said on Wednesday.
Altogether 114 adults, including a disabled woman and a man who suffered gunshot wounds ten days ago, and 126 children will be held in quarantine at the immigration office’s facilities in southern Hungary, the ministry said.
The Hungarian state will provide them with food and shelter, they will also receive basic health and hygiene packages and clothing, it added.
Their medical examination, the organization of their supply of clothing appropriate for the season, and the recording and verification of their data necessary for the performance of the tasks of the immigration authorities began.
Hungary acts as a fully loyal and reliable ally with other countries during the Afghanistan evacuations and expects the same attitude from its allies, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Monday.
Szijjártó told a press conference that the first aircraft involved in rescue operations had arrived to Budapest late on Sunday. It carried 173 people, including a signifact number transported on request by the US and Austria, he added. In exchange, the government expexts allies
including US soldiers supervising the operations at Kabul airport, not to hinder the entry of persons to the airport that Hungary plans to take out of the country.
He added that it was an unacceptable explanation that crowdedness had prevented them from allowing such persons to enter.
“We are not adding to the crowds, our aircraft is there, once people enter, they can board the plane,”
he said.” The issue has been raised in several platforms and progress has been made but cooperation should be even more flexible, he added.
Szijjártó said there were Hungarian soldiers in the field helping the identification and entry of persons. In addition to Hungarian citizens that need to be rescued, there are hundreds of locals that used to personally help the Hungarian contingent in recent years, he added.
“We must of course treat them as partners in trouble and we are continually working on their rescue, as well,” he said, adding that only the people who cooperated with, worked with and helped Hungarian soldiers were affected.
