Two Hungarian diplomats to help Moldova’s EU integration, says Hungarian FM

The Hungarian foreign ministry will assign two diplomats to work in Chisinau and help the Moldovan government’s progress towards European integration, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said after talks with Aureliu Ciocoi, Moldova’s foreign affairs and European integration minister, on Tuesday.

EU enlargement and the Eastern Partnership programme rank high among Hungary’s foreign policy priorities, he told a press conference.

Hungary seeks to develop bilateral relations and promotes closer ties between the European Union and Moldova, Szijjártó said.

“The EU needs success stories; and the Eastern Partnership could be one, in which the Republic of Moldova has a very important role to play,” he said.

Szijjártó noted that Moldova had signed a free trade agreement with the EU and was an observer state in the Eurasian Economic Union.

• Hungary signs bilateral agreements with Moldova, Tunisia, Namibia, Palestine
• Moldova’s foreign minister visits Hungary

“When we talk about eastern partnership we mean actual partnership. You will never experience any lecturing or interference in domestic affairs from us,” he said.

“We will never voice an opinion about your domestic affairs because that’s just simply none of our business,” he added.

Eximbank is helping Hungary-Moldova business relations with a 100 million dollar credit line

and OTP has become the largest player in the Moldovan financial market through an investment, which will give further encouragement to Hungarian companies to invest there, he said.

Richter has a 10 percent share in the Moldovan pharmaceutical market, he said, adding that under a new agreement 40 Moldovan students would get scholarships in Hungary.

During his stay in Chisinau, Szijjártó met President Igor Dodon, Prime Minister Ion Chicu, Parliamentary Speaker Zinaida Greceanii and minister of economy and infrastructure Anatol Usatii. He will also meet Antal Kósa, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Chisinau, who is from Romania’s Bacau (Bákó) County.