Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife were received with military honors in Buda Castle on Thursday.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, President Tamás Sulyok and their wives greeted Xi and Peng Liyuan ahead of a military ceremony on the second day of their official visit to Hungary. The Chinese president, during a plenary discussion with Sulyok at the presidential Sándor Palace afterwards, said cooperation between China and Hungary was based on mutual respect and trust. “You know who your true friends are in times of hardship,” Xi said, quoting a Hungarian proverb. Sulyok quoted Hungary’s Fundamental Law, saying Hungary respected other peoples’ freedom and culture and strove for cooperation with all nations of the world. He said Hungary continued to work to become a bridgehead between East and West. Before their meeting, Xi and Sulyok then viewed a ceremonial parade of the Ceremonial Battalion of the Hungarian Armed Forces, the National Ceremonial Equestrian Unit and the Count Ferenc Nádasdy Hussar Regiment. Peng attended cultural programmes in St Stephen Hall with First Lady Zsuzsanna Nagy. Xi will stay in Hungary until Friday, on an official visit marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.