ISLAMABAD: The Hungarian government has announced an exclusive credit-line of $84 million for Hungarian companies to do business with Pakistan.
Together with this a loan facility of $50 million for projects in fisheries and food processing was announced by the Hungarian government. The two sides will also work towards establishing direct air links.
Meanwhile, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Cooperation within the Framework of the Stipendium Hungaricum Program 2020-22 was signed between the two sides, under which the Hungarian government will provide 200 scholarships annually to Pakistani students to study in Hungary.
These developments came Thursday in wide-ranging talks at the Foreign Office between Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and the visiting Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Peter Szijjarto. The visiting dignitary also called on Prime Minister Imran Khan.
“Pakistan and Hungary enjoy friendly relations and close cooperation at bilateral and multilateral fora. The visit of Foreign Minister Szijjarto will contribute to reinforcing bilateral economic partnership and enhancing mutual understanding on regional and international issues,” said Qureshi.
The talks covered bilateral relations and exchange of views on regional and international issues.
“Foreign Minister Szijjarto is visiting Pakistan accompanied by a high-level official delegation as well as 17 businessmen. The foreign minister fondly recalled his earlier interaction with Foreign Minister Szijjarto during the inauguration of Hungary-Pakistan Trade and Economic Window (HPTEW),” said the Foreign Office.
Later Péter Szijjártó called on Prime Minister Imran Khan in which the prime minister underlined the importance of developing a strong economic relationship commensurate with friendly bilateral ties and the potential of the two countries.
“The prime minister stressed the need for expanding beneficial cooperation in trade, energy, water resource management, food and agriculture, science and technology, and higher education, and asked the Hungarian business community to take advantage of the business friendly climate of Pakistan and bring further investment into the country,” said the Foreign Office.
The prime minister while commenting on Afghanistan said there was no military solution, and that peace and stability in Afghanistan would yield other significant dividends including enhanced trade and regional connectivity.
At the Foreign Office, the two foreign ministers held one-on-one meeting, which was followed by delegation-level talks. The foreign ministers reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral relations and explored ways to deepen existing cooperation across diverse areas such as trade, economic, agriculture research, food industry, aviation, energy, water resource management, science and technology, and higher education. It was agreed to work together to forge a strong bilateral economic partnership.
Regarding Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJ&K), the foreign minister highlighted the serious human rights situation. Qureshi added that the recent reaffirmation of ceasefire understanding on the Line of Control (LoC) was in line with Pakistan’s consistent position on maintaining regional peace and security.
He underscored the importance of peaceful resolution of Jammu and Kashmir dispute, stressing that the onus was on India to create an enabling environment for dialogue.
