Hungarian State Secretary Responds To German Criticism
- 21 Aug 2014 9:00 AM
Péter Szijjártó, the Hungarian state secretary of foreign affairs and trade, on Wednesday called recent, critical remarks by German Minister of State Michael Roth “politically motivated” and “lacking a factual basis.” Interviewed by the liberal daily Der Tagesspiegel, Roth, a Social Democrat, expressed doubt that “the Hungarian government in office is committed to the EU’s fundamental values to the required extent.”
Szijjártó said that criticising others without bringing up concrete facts “is by no means in line with European values”.
“Democracy and European values should not be protected from us, freedom-loving Central European peoples who had fought long for living in democracy, according to European values. Central European nations, including the Hungarian, therefore deserve respect,” he said.
Hungary and Germany are strategic allies, Szijjártó said, referring to a record-breaking bilateral trade turnover and 6,000 German companies that had invested 6 billion euros in Hungary since 2010 and employed 300,000 Hungarians.
Source www.hungarymatters.hu
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