Speaking to a local radio station in Băile Tuşnad (Tusnádfürdő), in central Romania, Varga said the euro zone had experienced difficulties in the past few years, and adoption currently does not appear to be “overly attractive”.

Hungary complies with all but one of the conditions for joining the single currency but it does not wish to enter the ERM II exchange-rate corridor yet, he said.

The fact that Hungary is now in such a position represents a huge advance on six years ago, when the country did not comply with a single condition for adopting the euro, he added.

If Hungary were to join prematurely, it could end up like “certain Mediterranean countries, which due to their lack of competitiveness were unable to make use of the opportunities of euro-zone membership.”

On the topic of Brexit, Varga said Hungary must take advantage of the opportunities presented by Britain’s eventual withdrawal from the European Union.

The government is making efforts to attract economically important players to Hungary from the UK, primarily in the car industry. Hungary also wants to headquarter the European Banking Authority, if it is forced to depart from London, Varga said.

Republished with permission of Hungary Matters, MTI’s daily newsletter.