Irish and Hungarian PMs meet over European affairs

BUDAPEST, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- Ireland and Hungary shared common views in several European affairs, such as taxes, budget, enlargement and Brexit, according to a joint press conference given here on Thursday by Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban.

"We agree with the Hungarian government that the best way to stabilize the Western Balkans is if the European Union (EU) moves towards enlargement in the case of the former Yugoslavia member states and Albania," Varadkar said.

On the Brexit, Varadkar said "We both agreed that the European Union will be diminished, without the contribution of the British." He also expressed his gratitude for the Hungarian government's understanding of the specific Irish aspects of the Brexit negotiations, including the Irish-Northern Irish border issue.

Varadkar stated that it was in the interest of both countries to establish the closest possible link between the European Union and the United Kingdom following the withdrawal of the country from the EU.

According to the Irish chief of government, Hungary and Ireland share the same view of the European tax harmonization and both countries want the status quo concerning the EU budget and development funds.

However, he underlined that Ireland did not agree with Hungary on the issue of European migration management and supported the concept of joint burden sharing within the EU.

In the case of migration, where differences remain between Hungary and the majority of the EU, Orban made clear that "Hungary was not against anyone" but insisted on keeping its own identity, culture and achievements.

Schengen rules have to be respected, the external borders of the EU must be protected and closed, and the interior ones must remain open, Orban emphasized.

On the question of tax policy, Orban confirmed that Hungary did not consider tax harmonization desirable because "taxation was an important part of competition."

"We do not want to see any regulation in the EU that would tie Hungary's hands regarding its tax policy," he said.

As agriculture is important for both countries, the topic of agricultural subsidies was also on the table. "It is in Hungary's interest that the EU's current agricultural policy does not change on substantive issues," Orban pointed.

"We agreed with Leo Varadkar that the EU can become strong only if the member states of the EU are also strong one by one, individually," Orban underlined. "If we want a strong EU, everyone should do its homework back home," he added. Enditem