Xi-Orban sit-down: What China and Hungary's leaders agreed on

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban held talks in Budapest on Thursday as part of the Chinese leader’s final stop on his five-day European tour. What was on the agenda?

🔸 The negotiations saw the sides sign 18 new agreements to deepen bilateral economic and cultural cooperation, including accords on nuclear energy, investments and tourism.

🔸 Xi told reporters after the talks that Beijing and Budapest had agreed to elevate bilateral relations to “an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for the new era.”

🔸 “This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Hungary, ushering in a new and important opportunity for the development of bilateral relationship," the Chinese leader pointed out.

🔸 Xi added that during the Thursday talks, Orban, in particular, agreed that China’s Belt and Road Initiative “is highly consistent with Hungary’s strategy of opening to the east.”

🔸 The Chinese leader also voiced hope that Hungary, which is to hold the rotating EU presidency in the second half of the year, will play an active role in promoting “the healthy and stable development of China-EU relations.”

🔸 In a similar vein, Orban, who touted China as “one of the pillars of the new world order," stressed that Hungarian-Chinese trade had quadrupled in the past 20 years, transforming bilateral relations into "a strategic partnership."

🔸 The prime minister recalled that 20 years ago, Chinese investment was so small in Hungary that a "magnifying glass" was needed to find it. Last year, however, three-quarters of all foreign investment in Hungary was by China, he said, adding that it helped provide jobs for tens of thousands of Hungarians.

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