In 2021 we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Hungarian recognition of Estonia as an independent state. The act of recognition took place on the Estonian national holiday, on the 24th of February, exactly three years after the declaration of the independence of Estonia. On this occasion, State Secretary for Security Policy, Mr Péter Sztáray received the Estonian Ambassador, Ms Kristi Karelsohn in order to hand over the letter of Minister Péter Szijjártó addressed to his counterpart, the Estonian Foreign Minister Ms Eva-Maria Liimets commemorating this centenary. In his letter, Mr Szijjártó recalls the close ties between the two nations stemming from the shared Finno-Ugric roots of our languages, followed by a stock-taking of the very broad spectrum of the bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the wake of the re-establishment of our diplomatic relations in 1991. In this respect, the letter highlights as an example Hungary’s participation in the NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission that took place in 2015 and in 2019 with a planned third round in 2022.
At today’s discussion, State Secretary Sztáray and Ambassador Karelsohn shared a very positive assessment of the bilateral relations underlining the importance of regular high-level meetings. They concluded that despite their different political affiliations the two governments have similar positions on a wide range of foreign policy related issues. These include inter alia the relevance of the trans-Atlantic bonds, the role of NATO in safeguarding peace and security on our continent, as well as the importance of regional cooperation for small and medium size countries in furthering their national interests at EU level. In this connection, the shared commitment to maintaining regular consultations between the Visegrad Group and the Baltic states was also emphasized.
On the same occasion, Minister Szijjártó had also congratulated Ms. Eva-Maria Liimets in person on the 22nd of February in Brussels, on the margins of the EU Foreign Affairs Council.