Further, Hungary will block Ukraine’s endeavours in all international forums in protest against its education law which discriminates against ethnic minorities, he said. In addition, Hungary had been prepared to block Romania’s membership of the OECD, too, before it promised to resolve the outstanding issue of the Hungarian school in Târgu Mureș (Marosvásárhely).

“The current patriotic foreign policy will go to the extremes in order to strengthen the country and the Hungarian communities beyond the borders,” he said.

Referring to joint economic ties and joint interests in international forums, Szijjártó said recent events demonstrated that Hungary and Romania are interdependent. He cited joint action against the Ukrainian education law as an example.

He said the Romanian authorities had demonstrated openness and good will concerning the government’s Transylvanian Economic Development Programme after Hungary made it clear that the country wants to achieve exactly the same aims as Germany does with Saxons in Transylvania.

The minister said he hoped that the accreditation of Hungarian diplomats serving at the consulates of Miercurea Ciuc (Csíkszereda) and Cluj-Napoca would take place as soon as possible, and the new consul-general in Miercurea Ciuc would be similarly accredited. Only one or two bureaucratic hurdles are left before the Hungarian cultural institute in Cluj (Kolozsvár) can open.

“Not wishing to go too far, I have the feeling that, after a long time, Romania is now showing the greatest openness to forming our relations with intelligence and on a European level,” he said.

Republished with permission of Hungary Matters, MTI’s daily newsletter.

MTI photo: Kovács Tamás