President Marcos hopes that the Philippines and Hungary can forge new partnerships to strengthen their economic ties.
Marcos expressed the Philippine government's intention during the courtesy call of Hungary's Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Péter Szijjártó at the Malacañan Palace on Thursday, June 13.
"I hope that with all that is happening around the world and all of the opportunities, of course there are challenges, and all the opportunities also that is – that we’ll be able to hopefully forge new relationships,” he told Szijjártó.
Szijjártó, on the other hand, extended his gratitude to Marcos for the warm welcome accorded to him, expressing his delight and intention to work with his counterparts in the country.
“Mr. President, thank you so much for receiving me. Thank you so much for the invitation. You have great secretaries with whom I’ll be working together for a long time. This is the third occasion that I have the honor to visit your fantastic country,” Szijjártó said.
Szijjártó said he is working closely with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to further improve the vibrant relationship between the Philippines and Hungary as he stressed the great results achieved between the two countries in recent years.
Hungary has generally been supportive of the Philippines in European Union (EU) and United Nations (UN) discussions on human rights and alleged extra-judicial killings in accordance with Hungary’s policy of non-interference in the domestic affairs of other countries.
In 2023, Hungary was the Philippines’ 46th trading partner, 30th export market, and 64th import source. The country served as the second home to around 16,098 Filipinos as of December 2023.
Majority of Filipinos there are employed as automotive technicians, machine operators, drivers, forklift operators, hotel workers, farm workers, warehouse workers, logistics operators and truck drivers.
Philippine-Hungary diplomatic relations were established on September 28, 1973.
Szijjártó previously visited Manila in 2017, where he met then acting Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and paid a courtesy call on former president Rodrigo Duterte.
He returned to the Philippines in 2020 and met with then DFA Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr.