Following talks in Helsinki with his Finnish counterpart Pekka Haavisto, Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said Hungary and Finland are among the few countries which expanded their economy while curbing greenhouse gas emissions.
The minister said taking over the rotating presidency of the Council of Europe later in May, Hungary will prioritize adopting regulations to facilitate the European economy’s growth while protecting the environment and nature. Cooperation with Finland will be an important foundation for that work, he added. Finland and Hungary are also bound by their treasured Finno-Ugric roots, the minister said.
Minister Szijjártó highlighted the room for improvement in sectors such as nuclear technology, “a safe, cheap and clean energy resource”. Finland and Hungary are currently using similar technologies to build nuclear power plants, he said. Electric batteries are important tools to reduce the ecological impact of transport, but their proper recycling is also a key issue. The use of hydrogen technologies should also be expanded in an economically competitive manner, he said.