PM ORBÁN HAILS RELATIONS WITH KURDISTAN AS PRESIDENT BARZANI PAYS OFFICIAL VISIT TO HUNGARY

Kurdistan has good chances to become a modern, efficient and successful region and Hungary could develop close cooperation with it, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said after meeting Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani in Parliament. PM Orbán told reporters at a joint press conference that the region’s stability is very important not only to locals but also to the West and Europe as a whole and Hungary considers its military mission in Kurdistan “an important part of its western identity.” Islamic State “represents comprehensive threat and a factor of destabilisation”, so Europe should support all efforts for peace that aim at eliminating terrorist organisations, Orbán insisted.

Commenting on Hungarian-Kurdish relations, Orbán said Hungarian oil and gas company MOL has not withdrawn from Iraq even in the most difficult and riskiest period and became a flagship company for cooperation. He also emphasised that the Kurds have always been highly respected and appreciated in Hungary, as his nation is one that has suffered much, and therefore it turns with empathy towards other nations with difficult histories. He also said that currently there are thirty Kurdish students receiving Hungarian state scholarships to study in Hungary.

President Barzani expressed his high appreciation for the Hungarian National Assembly’s decision to send the Hungarian contingent to Kurdistan, and added that in Kurdistan Hungarian soldiers will be safe and amongst friends. Barzani emphasised that there are certain areas in which Hungary and Kurdistan may cooperate successfully. He said that MOL has shown great bravery by staying in the region, even when it was seriously threatened. President Barzani pointed out that the Kurds have become the target of attacks by Islamic State, the region’s most brutal terrorist organisation, but thanks to their resilience and the help of coalition friends “they have broken the spine of Islamic State”. Although the organisation has suffered defeats, the danger is not yet over – but hopefully the Kurds will soon be able to win the final battle, he said.