Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has held talks with British Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond as well as the British politician meeting ministers from the Visegrad Group.
PM Orbán and Hammond agreed that Hungary and Britain share an interest in preserving close economic cooperation.
During the meeting, held in Parliament on Thursday evening, Péter Szijjártó, minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, was also present where current European and global challenges were on the agenda.
According to MTI, British companies play an important role in the Hungarian economy, with some 800 British companies employing more than 50,000 people in Hungary.
Britain is Hungary’s 11th most important trading partner and its 6th largest investor. These achievements must be preserved and further developed outlining the talks.
Following his meeting with the prime minister, Hammond and Hungary's foreign minister met with ministers from the Visegrad Group.
Minister Szijjártó said Britain and the European Union must negotiate as comprehensive and broad of a free-trade deal as possible so that economic, trade and investment cooperation remains free of obstacles.
The minister said that if Britain and the EU are unable to sign a comprehensive agreement, UK–EU trade would be regulated by the rules of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), resulting in an imposition of tariffs “which hopefully nobody wants”.
The minister underlined the importance of protecting the rights of EU citizens working or studying in the UK after Brexit. He said Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia were right to prepare together for potential risks and economic challenges that could arise from Britain’s exit from the bloc.
Minister Szijjártó added that Hungary’s interest lay in a predictable result to the Brexit talks for businesses and economic players.