Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman 13 December 2019 visited Budapest, where he chaired the 93rd session of the Danube Commission and met with the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Péter Szijjártó.
The two ministers underscored satisfaction with the intensity of bilateral dialogue and cooperation in various areas. Just this week the two countries’ culture ministers inked a cooperation programme, while defence ministers opened the Multinational Special Aviation Training Centre in Zemunik.
Especially intensive and successful is the area of cross-border cooperation, while national minorities represent an important link in the two countries’ relations. Croats in Hungary and Hungarian in Croatia have at their disposal instruments of protection of indigenous culture and tradition, as confirmed by this week’s 15th session of the Croatian-Hungarian Committee for Protection of National Minorities. Grlić Radman highlighted the opening of a dormitory for Hungarian students in Osijek as further proof of commitment and care for national minorities.
Grlić Radman and Szijjártó also discussed the priorities of Croatia’s EU presidency as well as topical EU matters such as the MFF, Brexit and migration. They expressed support for the enlargement process and the opening of accession talks with Albania and North Macedonia. They underlined the importance of the Zagreb Summit in May 2020, which will be organized in cooperation with European Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Hungary’s Olivér Várhelyi.
The two ministers also discussed the prospects of advancing economic cooperation.