Leaders of the Hungarian minority in the Carpathian Basin meet in Croatia

The 3rd Round Table on National Policy of the Carpathian Basin was held on Saturday in Croatia under the title “After the elections, before the challenges”, with the participation of leaders of all Hungarian parties abroad.

“It is important to think in a united way on almost all issues that affect Hungarians,” said Árpád János Potápi, State Secretary for National Policy in the Prime Minister’s Office, at the event in Rijeka. “The purpose of these meetings is to show people that we not only express ourselves in politics and sit side by side in various forums, but that we also maintain friendly relations with each other, and that we actually look after each other others and we express ourselves as such. friends,” said the Secretary of State.

He emphasized that

during such a roundtable, they could speak more openly and learn from each other’s successes and mistakes to help their colleagues in areas where there is not as much cooperation and which they consider to be at a disadvantage.

Róbert Jankovics, president of Democratic Union of Hungarians in Croatia (HMDK), said that they had organized an extremely important national policy roundtable for the third time.

He emphasized that

the main task of the Fiume forum was to provide a concise overview of current national political priorities between the heads of the State Secretariat for National Policy and the leaders of Hungarian parties abroad, to analyze the serious political challenges of the period to come and discuss possible joint action.

Participants adopted a joint declaration during the event. They agreed that only a peaceful end to the Russian-Ukrainian war can guarantee the long-term security and development of the region.

and expressed concern over the series of difficulties faced by the Hungarian community in Transcarpathia as a result of the war.

The signatories expressed hope that the rights of the Hungarian community in Zakarpattia will be fully restored, as a condition for Ukraine’s accession to the EU.

Forum participants welcomed the results of the European elections, “which show that it is important for Hungarian communities to make their voice heard at European level”, and the electoral results which allowed the Hungarian parties in the Carpathian Basin to maintain their position. positions at the national, regional and local levels over the past year.

They were also confident that Transylvanian Hungarians would show their strength in Romania’s presidential elections in September and in the parliamentary elections in December.

“Hungarian communities abroad can only survive if they have strong Hungarian representation, which can be maintained and further strengthened through broad unity of Hungarians,” the participants wrote in the statement.

The forum brought together leaders of Hungarian parties from across the border: Hunor Kelemen, president of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (RMDSZ), Bálint Pásztor, president of the Alliance of Hungarians in Vojvodina (VMSZ) , László Brenzovics, president of the Hungarian Cultural Association of Zakarpattia (KMKSZ), Krisztián Forró, president of the Hungarian Alliance (in Slovakia), Róbert Jankovics, president of HMDK and Dusan Orban, president of the Hungarian Ethnic Autonomous Community of Pomurje (MMÖNK). Also the staff of the State Secretariat for National Policy who are in daily contact with these leaders.

Via MTI, featured image: Facebook/Potápi Árpád János