Tamás Sulyok, President of Hungary, at the Three Seas Initiative Summit
Every year, the Three Seas Initiative (TSI) summit and business forum is organised with the participation of 13 countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Austria, Croatia, Romania, Greece, Bulgaria, Poland, Slovenia, Austria, Croatia and Bulgaria), situated between the Baltic, Black and Adriatic Seas.
At the summit - now held in Vilnius - President Tamás Sulyok expressed Hungary's long-standing intention and goal of strengthening political, economic and infrastructural relations between the Central European countries, thus raising the region's competitiveness and economic interest assertion capacity in Europe and the world through cooperation. According to the President of Hungary, the further development of economic and diplomatic relations based on mutual respect and establishing connectivity between Central and Eastern European countries is of the utmost importance for Hungary. The representatives of the countries participating in the TSI Summit adopted a joint declaration.
The Hungarian Head of State also participated in several bilateral meetings during the Vilnius summit.
The discussion with Romanian President Klaus Werner Johannis focused on the strengthening of relations between their countries and the strategic partnership between Romania and Hungary. Tamás Sulyok congratulated Romania on its partial accession to the Schengen area and stressed that the country should have been a full member long ago, which Hungary has always supported.
In his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Tamás Sulyok said that Hungary condemns Russian aggression and continues to do its utmost to help refugees from Ukraine and provide humanitarian aid to the war-torn country. The Hungarian Head of State said that the war must be stopped, and that Hungary remains committed to the soonest possible ceasefire and to a sustainable and just peace. Tamás Sulyok added that the most important goal is to guarantee the security of the European continent. The President of Hungary drew the attention of his Ukrainian counterpart to the importance of restoring and guaranteeing the acquired rights of the Hungarian minority living in Transcarpathia as soon as possible. He emphasized that, as a lawyer, he believes that what is needed is simply to return to the previous situation and restore the acquired rights of the Hungarian minority. During the meeting, both sides expressed their commitment to continue the dialogue and constructive negotiations.
In his meeting with Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs, Tamás Sulyok said that Hungary, as a NATO member, is a reliable ally of Latvia. One of the proofs of this is that the Hungarian Air Force has been a regular participant in the Baltic Air Policing Mission. He added that in addition to economic cooperation, new chapters could be opened in our cultural relations as well, as Hungary is ready to share its experience of the Veszprém-Balaton 2023 European Capital of Culture event with Liepāja, which will host a similar project in 2027. The Hungarian Head of State commended the fact that bilateral relations are problem-free and that the two countries are always open for dialogue, despite the different emphases of their positions.
In his meeting with the representative of the Slovak Republic - Deputy Prime Minister Tomáš Taraba, - Tamás Sulyok said that both countries have an interest in strengthening their strategic partnership. They agreed on and spoke out for the strengthening of the Visegrad Cooperation, which is an important forum for strategic consultation and cooperation. The Hungarian Head of State confirmed the invitation extended in his earlier congratulatory letter and said that he would be expecting President-elect Peter Pellegrini to visit Budapest after taking office.