President Katalin Novák met with the leader of the World Jewish Congress and the heads of several international and American Jewish organisations during the first day of her official visit to the United States, where she attended the opening event of the 77th UN General Assembly (UNGA) session.
According to MTI, the situation of Hungarian Jews was among the topics discussed with President of the World Jewish Congress Ronald Lauder in the organization’s headquarters in New York. Lauder welcomed President Novák in Hungarian on Tuesday local time and they held talks behind closed doors. President Novák also met William Daroff, CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Eric Greenberg, Director of United Nations Relations and Strategic Partnerships at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, and several other officials of the World Jewish Congress. Hungarian Ambassador to Washington, Szabolcs Takács, welcomed the participants at the meeting.
In a post she published on social media, President Novák said the message she had conveyed to the Jewish leaders at the talks was that “Hungary is a true friend of Israel and of Jewish communities”. In a message issued on the occasion of the opening of the 77th UN General Assembly session, Novák highlighted the importance of peace. “As the head of the Hungarian delegation, I will do my best to bring us closer to peace. This is not only a Hungarian interest, this is in the best interest of all people”, she said. On Tuesday afternoon, President Novák attended and addressed a UN forum for female heads of government and state convened by Csaba Kőrösi, President of the UNGA. Novák held bilateral talks with the prime minister of Andorra. She is scheduled to address the UNGA on Wednesday afternoon local time and hold talks with Kőrösi, Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. President Novák is scheduled to attend a reception by US President Joe Biden on Wednesday evening.
Photo credit: Facebook/Novák Katalin