Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said Hungary has a fundamental interest in forging the strongest possible cooperation with India.
After talks with his counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in New Delhi on Wednesday, the foreign minister said that India is expected to become the world’s third-largest economy within years, and its weight in global politics is growing. Therefore, the closest possible cooperation with India “is in Hungary’s fundamental interest”, he said. “That’s made all the easier as we see the urgent issues of world politics similarly,” he said, adding that India was pro-peace, opposed the politicisation of international organisations and promoted ending armed conflicts through negotiation. Bilateral trade between Hungary and India came to one billion euros last year, and large Indian corporations such as Tata Consultancy Services and car industry suppliers Motherson and Apollo have launched “enormous investments” in Hungary, he said. The number of Indian students vying to study in Hungary hit a record in 2023, with 2,400 students applying for 200 government grants, he added. Minister Szijjártó said establishing a direct flight between the two countries was an “important task” and would smooth economic cooperation.