China’s President Xi Jinping travels to Hungary this week as part of a tour of three European countries. Former Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Medgyessy spoke to CGTN ahead of the trip and believes closer ties with Beijing should not impact Hungary’s position in the EU. #ChinaEurope2024 #Hungary #China
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00:00 Can you tell me what is the current state of relations between Hungary and China
00:07 and how do you see them now particularly in terms of economic development?
00:13 You know, we have some traditions with China
00:19 because the history started on the Silk Road
00:28 to have relations with China and Hungary.
00:33 And we have some traditions, good traditions.
00:36 And that's 75 years we made diplomatic relations with China.
00:47 So in 2002-2003 started a new era of the relations between Hungary and China
00:57 because we recognized in Hungary that China will be one of the most important powers in the world
01:06 and we have to create good relations, economic, cultural, diplomatic, personal relations.
01:14 And I'm very, very happy to see that not only me but my successors follow also this politics
01:25 and that's the reason because today I can say that the Hungarian-Chinese relations are really excellent.
01:32 You know, we're looking like an opportunity for Hungary, this initiative
01:38 because it opened the doors to better relations and concrete projects.
01:49 I give an example. We have the project, the railway development between Belgrade and Budapest.
02:05 And I think this is good for both countries, good for China because they make the investment
02:14 but also good for the other countries because it opened the opportunity to continue
02:23 and to have the very good and very intensive trade relations, not only between Serbia and Hungary
02:33 but between Western Europe and Eastern Europe.
02:38 Now critics argue that Hungary's ties with China could undermine EU unity.
02:46 How do you respond to those concerns?
02:49 That's... Me, I think more China, this is not less Europe.
03:02 This is not a contradictory relation. So to use the good relations with China
03:12 give us better position to developing and to have more important role in European Union.
03:23 So I don't see really any contradiction between the relations with two very important groups, if you want, Europe and China.
03:36 We have a very good intellectual capacity in my country.
03:42 And we are ready to learn from the others who are ready to cooperate with Hungary.
03:51 But as a small country, as I told you, we have a very good intellectual capacity.
03:58 And that's our added value in the Chinese-Hungarian relations.
04:06 And we are ready really to learn also from the Chinese technology.
04:13 Some significant developments BYD coming to Southern Hungary, CATL also setting up shop here,
04:21 making it possibly the biggest hub for electric vehicle battery making in Europe.
04:29 Did you ever dream of that? Did you ever think that would be achievable back in 2003?
04:34 Not at all. No, not at all. I'm very happy to see that the Chinese companies coming to Hungary to do something.
04:46 But, you know, my dream was a little bit larger.
04:52 Because I'm very happy to see that the economic relations developing very well.
05:00 But I think this is also very important to have the good cultural relations,
05:06 to have the relations in the school, in the research and development, not only pure economy.
05:21 How do you see the relationship between Hungary and China in the future?
05:30 You know, I'm quite optimistic because I think despite the good results,
05:38 we have a lot of space to developing the relations.
05:45 And there is a will in the political level but also in the personal relations, also to developing these relations.