This beautiful Ybl-estate will be the Turkic Council Center in Hungary

The Council will not have to pay for the magnificent estate in the Budakeszi street, and it will function as the organisation’s office in Budapest.

According to index.hu, the estate is three-storeyed and 800 square metres. The Hungarian government bought it in 2016 together with the objects of art inside for almost 1.4 billion HUF. 

Based on a bill accepted by the parliament, the Hungarian government will maintain the building and pay the employees there. Furthermore, the Turkic Council will get

tax relief on the equipment and properties of the office.

The tax exemption would not apply on the property tax, but Hungary will pay that.

No Hungarian authorities will be allowed to enter the building without the approval of its director only if there is a situation of catastrophe or fire. Authorities cannot search or seize their data, properties or equipment in case of a perquisition or judicial process.

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that

the Turkic Council receives the same exemptions and right as the headquarters of any other international organisation in Hungary. Opposition parties said in the dispute over the bill in the parliament that the employees of the Turkic Council in Hungary are

a national security risk.

Jobbik added that the legal state of the Council’s headquarter is very similar to the Russian International Investment Bank of which many say that it is a centre of the spies of Moscow in Europe.

As we reported before, PM Viktor Orbán offered a bridgehead to Europe and the European Union for the Turkic Council this October during the 7th Turkic Council summit in Baku, Azerbaijan. Orbán noted that

Hungary’s Eximbank has opened a credit line with Turkic Council member states,

adding that 195 million euros were available for Hungarian-Turkish cooperation and 80 million euros each for Hungary’s Kazakh, Uzbek and Azeri business ties. Those with Kyrgyzstan will have a pot of 27 million euros available. He noted that trade between Hungary and the member states of the Turkic Council had doubled to 4 billion US dollars under his watch.

Further, Hungary provides more than 700 state scholarships to young people from the countries of the Turkic Council, he added. Meanwhile, Orbán told the summit that the UK would leave the EU at the end of October. He encouraged Turkic Council members to be quick to start talks with the British on new trade deals.

Members of the Turkic Council include Turkey as well as for Turkic countries Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Uzbekistan became a full member of the organisation at the Baku meeting.

Hungary has had observer status in the Council since 2018.

Source: index.hu