Hungarian ambassador to Qatar Ferenc Korom has praised His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani as one of the world's most important political leaders who is an advocate of peace and stability both in the Middle East region and in the world in general.
In a statement to Qatar News Agency (QNA), the ambassador said: "We are deeply honoured and pleased that His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani is making a historic visit to Hungary as a guest of honour on August 20 which is our National Day and also for visiting the 2023 World Athletics Championships which we are organising this year from August 19-27."
He noted that his country is hosting the World Athletics Championships following Qatar's hosting of the successful FIFA World Cup. Qatar set very high standards in event management, security measures and many other fields.
"This year we very much wish to follow the Qatari example and best practices in order to successfully organise the most important sport event in 2023," he added.
"His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani's visit to Hungary indicates the high level our bilateral relations have reached in the last couple of years. During the current visit, we can sign a number of agreements that create the solid basis for our co-operation in important areas and also, we can open discussions in many other areas of mutual importance, " the ambassador said.
He stressed that relations between Hungary and Qatar have reached an unprecedented level in terms of high-level diplomatic visits on both sides, and the volume of bilateral trade exchange which has reached historic level, noting that Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban has visited Qatar twice last year -- during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and Qatar Economic Forum in May.
During his last visit to Qatar in May, the Hungarian prime minister expressed Budapest's intention to raise its relationship with Doha to a strategic level which it only maintains with its most important political and economic partners, the ambassador said.
He noted that the bilateral agreements that are currently under discussion by the sides cover such important areas as health, investment, agriculture or defence, among many others.
He emphasised that what is even more important than that is Hungary's relationship with Qatar is based on decades of friendship and mutual respect, as the two countries share many social and human values, and the same position in a number of issues of high importance in political affairs.
He underlined that his country's top priority at the moment is to finalise the bilateral investment protection agreement which would be a significant development in the relationship between Doha and Budapest. "We hope that this document will significantly stimulate our bilateral investments in the future," he said, adding that the signing of the bilateral agreements will initiate co-operation in a number of areas in which valuable expertise can be shared, in addition to learning about the Qatari best practices that would benefit his country.
"While both our countries is seeking peace and stability in current affairs, we see huge potential in military education, training and the defence industry. The co-operation in these fields guarantees that we are able to maintain the desired peace and stability. Besides sports, education and tourism could also be areas where we can develop closer ties," he said, adding that Hungarian universities offer world-class education programmes among others in medicine, physical education, engineering and music, expressing hope that with time, more Qatari students will see these opportunities and the huge potential in the Hungarian education sector.
The Hungarian ambassador said that the bilateral trade exchange has reached historical level, amounting to about $77mn in 2022, but said "we are still far from exploiting all the opportunities in bilateral trade."
He added that dairy products "are one of the most important Hungarian exports and we are proud to see the Hungarian kashkawan cheese, labneh and others in many Qatari stores."
He said the level of Qatari investment in Hungary is significantly below potential, and that Hungary wishes to attract more Qatari capital, stressing that the signing of an investment protection agreement could give a new impetus to the investment cooperation.
"We are interested in Qatar becoming a strategic investor in Hungary, among others in the field of air transport," he said, noting that there are important investment opportunities in the Hungarian real estate, hotel, manufacturing sectors and other fields due to the potential in the Hungarian economy.
About the shared vision of Hungary and Qatar towards international issues, the ambassador emphasised that sovereign nations, like Hungary and Qatar, should unite and co-ordinate their positions more effectively in an increasingly complex and dangerous world. "We appreciate that Qatar, like Hungary," is in favour of immediate peace in the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, he said.
He also commended Qatar's successful efforts in mediating between Iran, the US and EU in order to finalise the multilateral nuclear agreement which would be a significant step towards peace and stability, considering Qatar's active involvement in many issues with high importance for European security necessitates close co-operation between Hungary and Qatar which his country highly appreciates.