Szijjarto: Gas from Qatar could contribute to Hungary energy security from 2027
The ministry cited Szijjarto as saying ahead of a meeting of the Hungarian-Qatari mixed economic committee that energy security could be the most important area of cooperation between the two countries. As a result, LNG could arrive in Hungary from Qatar from 2027, he said.
Hungary maintains sensible energy policies focusing on the security of supplies and seeking opportunities for diversification, he added.
Ahead of the talks with Minister of Commerce and Industry Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Bin Qassim Al-Abdullah Al-Thani, Szijjarto said that the world economy had turned upside down twice in recent years and only those countries that maintain close cooperation with the economically growing regions of the world could emerge as winners.
“Nobody disputes that currently the Arab Gulf region is the fastest growing region in the world and cooperation with them is clearly in the interest of those that want to keep the economy on a path of growth despite the current difficult conditions,” he said.
“Qatari-Hungarian cooperation will be decisive in the future for our economic growth and energy security,” he added.
Szijjarto said that record-high Hungarian exports to Qatar at 67 million euros last year provided a good basis for this.
“At the same time, this was still at a level that provides enough growth potential for the future,” he added.
The areas for growth have been marked, including energy, agriculture, health industry, defence industry and food security, he said, adding that it was important for cooperation between companies to gain new impetus.
He also said that good progress was made at talks aiming to develop financial cooperation, with Hungary having a vested interest in the signing of an agreement on the mutual protection and boosting of investments as soon as possible.
“The European Union has made remarks that delay this progress but I believe we can overcome this and since you have already signed similar agreements with other European Union member countries, we trust that Hungary will not be left out,” he said.
