Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó welcomed a 45% increase in the volume of bilateral trade with Iran last year — and 55% this year — thanks to the increase in Hungarian textile and pharmaceutical exports and plastics imports from Iran.
Hungarian agricultural and food processing companies are accessing new export opportunities, and import licences are being issued for seed, poultry and certain medical instruments, he added. Some 2,000 Iranian students are attending university courses in Hungary, mainly in health sciences and the economy, and the Hungarian state maintains 150 scholarship places for students from Iran, he said.
He also welcomed Iran’s efforts to stop migration waves and narcotics trading. He added that the country neighbouring Afghanistan and Pakistan had an important role to play in reducing the pressure of migration on Europe. He also said that Hungary was dedicated to the peaceful use of nuclear energy and supported the renewal of the Iran nuclear deal “which would strengthen global security”.
Szijjártó told a joint press conference with the Iranian finance minister that during the events of recent days “it was reassuring how global and European decision-makers maintained strategic calm and responsible behaviour”. “An important lesson was that not everything is what it seems at first sight, and fake news and unfounded statements should not be trusted in such tense situations,” he added.
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