Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary : The Visegrád Group and Bavaria have a shared viewpoint on the EU

'The Visegrád Group (V4) and Bavaria have a shared viewpoint on the European Union and it is their common belief that the problem isn't with the fundamental values or the concept of the EU, but with Brussels' indecisiveness', the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade's Parliamentary State Secretary László Szabó told Hungarian news agency MTI on Thursday after taking part in a conference organised by the Hanns Seidel Foundation, which is affiliated with the governing Christian Socialist Union (CSU), and the countries of the V4 in Munich.

In his telephone statement, Mr. Szabó highlighted: 'The Visegrád Group of the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia, and Bavaria both believe that Brussels needs to be 'more committed' and that we must return to adhering to the common regulations'.
'It is our common belief that 'the problem isn't at our end' and that Brussels 'should not be coming up with new ideas', but should instead adhere to existing regulations. We must return to enforcing the regulations, for instance within the field of fiscal discipline, to once again assure the free movement of persons and goods within a Schengen Area that is free of internal border controls', the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade's Parliamentary State Secretary said.

'At the meeting, former Bavarian Prime Minister Günther Beckstein stressed that Bavaria is grateful to Hungary and the V4 for its efforts to stop illegal immigration, and called it a historic error that German Chancellor Angela Merkel introduced the culture of acceptance (Willkommenskultur)', he said.

Mr. Szabó told the press that it transpired at the meeting that there is 'more conjecture than knowledge' with relation to Great Britain's exit from the European Union (Brexit), but what everyone is certain of is that the process will take longer than two years and 'will not be painless'.

He stressed that a solution must be found for the situation of EU citizens working in the UK and British citizens working in Europe that is based on mutual interests. It is also important to Hungary that cooperation on defence should continue following Brexit, and not only within the framework of NATO, but also beyond it, Mr. Szabó said, pointing out that around 20 percent of the EU's defence capacity is provided by Great Britain, and its loss would create a major deficit.

The State Secretary also held several business and economic policy negotiations in the Bavarian capital, with relation to which he highlighted that there continues to be heightened interest in Hungary on the part of German enterprises, indicated not only by the fact that 80 percent of investors would invest in Hungary again according to the most recent survey by the German-Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, but also by the fact that 30 new major investment projects are currently under negotiation.
Bavaria is pleased by Hungary's performance and by the latest measures, including the introduction of the lowest level of corporation tax in Europe, meaning 'the Hungarian economy is gaining an increasingly good reputation', Mr. Szabó said. Bavaria also supports Hungary's plan to realise a transition from assembly plants towards high added value digital technologies and research & development, and its efforts to meet the challenges of digitalizing industry, the so-called 'Industrial Revolution 4.0'.

With relation to this, Mr. Szabó highlighted that he had come to an agreement with State Secretary Franz Josef Pschierer from the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs and Media, Energy and Technology to rekindle an old tradition and organise a Bavarian-Hungarian business forum in Munch during the second quarter of this year, with a similar meeting in Budapest following the German national elections in September.

(MTI)