The foreign minister has announced that Hungary and Romania will reopen their shared border to commuters.
Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, told MTI that like many other European countries, Hungary recently restricted traffic across its borders in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. However, many of those living along the Hungarian-Romanian border commute to the other country on a daily basis for work. “And besides protecting people’s health, our job is also to do our best to keep the economy going,” he added.
Minister Szijjártó said he and his Romanian counterpart have agreed that the policy will apply to Hungarians and Romanians living within a 30km radius of the border.
The two countries’ police chiefs will now decide which border stations will be open to commuters as well as the timeframe.
The minister said keeping the border open to commuters is in the interest of ethnic Hungarians in Romania, as well as Hungarian and Romanian businesses.
In a Facebook post, Minister Szijjártó said that the crossing facilities at Létavértes, Nyirábrány and Méhkerék would reopen. “This is how it goes when we realize our mutual interests. We could do that in connection with other causes, too,” he said.
A call center set up for advice on the coronavirus can be reached on +36-80-277-455 and +36-80-277-456 or by email koronavirus@bm.gov.hu
Photo credit: MTI