The ethnic Bulgarian community is small but its survival is important to Hungary, the state secretary for church and minority relations said at an event marking Hungary-Bulgaria friendship day.
Miklós Soltész opened the revamped Bulgarian orthodox church named after Saints Cyril and Methodius in Budapest and inaugurated a statue of Metropolitan Boris of Nevrokop, a martyr of communism. Soltész said the friendship between the two countries was rooted in their similar histories. Both countries suffered from Muslim attacks for centuries in the past, as well as from Communist dictatorships in the 20th century. State Secretary Tamás Menczer told the event that the friendship between the two countries meant that they could rely on each other, adding that they had similar positions on such major European issues as the importance of religion and culture.
MTI
