Szijjártó: Hungary considers Azerbaijan and its people true ally

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjártó has said that Hungary considers Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijani people its true ally.

Szijjártó made these remarks at the foundation-laying ceremony in Soltanli village of Azerbaijan's Jabrayil district, APA reports.

The minister noted that Hungary is ready to contribute to the reconstruction work in Karabakh.

“It is pleasant to see the returning Soltanli villagers. We have been working together for over 13 years to build a true strategic partnership between Hungary and Azerbaijan. We consider Azerbaijan our true ally, while the Azerbaijani people - our friends. The friendship between Hungary and Azerbaijan is real, and we have always been close to Azerbaijan in such issues as the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. From the very beginning, we have clearly stated that we are ready to contribute and participate in the reconstruction work in Karabakh. We arrived here from Fuzuli airport. Unfortunately, I noticed that there is still a lot of work to be done, huge work must be completed,” he said.

Meanwhile, the minister noted that the friendship between Hungary and Azerbaijan is not a friendship due to natural gas supplies.

He noted that the leaders of European countries, who 13 years ago criticised the Hungarian prime minister for his visit to Azerbaijan, are now looking for an opportunity to take a photo with the Azerbaijani President to use Azerbaijan's gas resources.

“Thirteen years ago, we were here for the first time with the prime minister and were criticised by our EU partners for visiting Azerbaijan. These European and other Western politicians who criticised us are now doing their best to take a photo with the Azerbaijani President to get natural gas,” he added.