Hungary wants to become engine of cooperation between Central Europe and Central Asia: FM

Hungary would like to become the engine of cooperation between Central Europe and Central Asia, and Tajikistan could play a major role in reaching that goal, a Hungarian official said here on Monday.

While the European Union is becoming introverted and focusing on its own problems, Central Europe needs to become the standard-bearer of business openings towards the East, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said at a press conference after a meeting with his Tajik counterpart Sirojiddin Aslov.

Central Asia has rich potential including energy and natural resources, and can become an important trading partner, said Szijjarto, adding Hungary and Tajikistan both support close cooperation between the two regions.

He also reassured Tajikistan that Hungary was doing its share to help restore order in Afghanistan, Tajikistan's neighbor, deploying a military force of more than 100, and training local forces.

Tajikistan has a 1,400 kilometer border with Afghanistan so we understand the effort required to protect it, the Hungarian FM said.

He noted that Hungary and Tajikistan had finalized an agreement on mutual protection of investments while Hungary's Eximbank was offering 36 million dollars in credit to Hungarian businesses wanting to enter the Tajik market. Water management, he said, was an important area of potential cooperation for the two countries.

Aslov said that Hungary and Tajikistan were committed to tightening their relationship and creating new areas of cooperation. The goal, he said, was a long term partnership between the two countries. Possible areas of cooperation he listed included energy, the environment, transport, logistics, the chemical industry, agriculture, culture, and education. Enditem