Hungary urged to promote ‘rational and friendly view’
Beijing is pushing Hungary to promote a “rational and friendly view” and adopt a “more pragmatic China policy” by the European Union after it takes the rotating presidency of the bloc in July.
The message was delivered by Foreign Minister Wang Yi when meeting Peter Szijjarto, Hungary’s minister of foreign affairs and trade, in Beijing.
The meeting came ahead of a possible trip to the country that President Xi Jinping will reportedly make after visiting France and Serbia next month. Beijing has yet to confirm the trip.
It also comes amid souring relations after the EU accused China of overcapacity in green industries that might distort the market – a claim Beijing denies. The EU has also embarked on a de-risking drive that targets China’s supply chain and hi-tech industries.
Wang called Hungary “a European country of unique influence that adopts an independent policy”. He said Beijing hoped Budapest would encourage the EU to take a “rational and friendly view of China’s development” and pursue a “more active and pragmatic China policy”.
“[China hopes Hungary will] strengthen China-EU strategic communication, create more positive expectations for mutually beneficial cooperation, and promote the sustained, stable and healthy development of China-EU relations,” Wang said, according to Beijing’s statement.
In response, Szijjarto said Hungary opposed “decoupling” with China, and welcomed more investment from Beijing flowing into his nation under the Belt and Road Initiative, the readout said.
Szijjarto said Hungary had always believed treating China as a partner was “a right choice”, while regarding the powerhouse as an enemy would only lead to “missed opportunities”. Szijjarto vowed to boost China-EU relations through connections with Budapest and Beijing.
“China is a major country with global influence. Hungary welcomes China’s increasing role in maintaining world peace and stability. Hungarian-Chinese and European-Chinese relations must remain robust in the current turbulent international situation,” he said.
Zoltan Kovacs, the Hungarian government’s international spokesman, posted on X, formerly Twitter, that the two foreign ministers’ talks saw progress on a Hungary-Serbia oil pipeline under the Belt and Road Initiative.
Kovacs said it would “enhance regional energy security, showcasing the deepening ChinaCentral Europe cooperation”.
He also said a Chinese stateowned telecommunication company – Fiberhome Telecom Tech – would establish its largest European base for optical cable production in Hungary, with an investment of 8 billion Hungarian forint (HK$170 million). Its parent company, Wuhan Research Institute of Posts and Telecommunications Company, was added to the United States’ Export Control Regulations entity list in 2020.
Despite souring of relations between China and the US, a number of European leaders have visited Beijing this year, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne.