Türkiye, Hungary sign slew of pacts during visit by Turkish President Erdogan

By Kaan Bozdogan

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AA) — During a visit by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Hungary, the two countries signed a cooperation agreement on Monday to enhance bilateral relations to the level of enhanced strategic partnership.

The 17-article agreement was signed in the capital Budapest, where Erdogan and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban chaired the sixth meeting of the high-level strategic cooperation council between the two nations.

Several high-level and senior officials, including Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, National Defense Minister Yasar Guler, and Hungarian representatives, were present during the signing ceremony.

- Agreements

Besides the Joint Political Declaration on the Elevated Level of Enhanced Strategic Partnership between Türkiye and Hungary, inked by Erdogan and Orban.

Turkish Family and Social Services Minister Mahinur Ozdemir Goktas and Hungarian Culture and Innovation Minister Janos Csak signed a memorandum of understanding for increased cooperation in social services.

Csak also signed a memorandum of understanding with Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy on collaboration related to graduate policies and scholarship programs.

Joint efforts on science and innovation, along with research and development in defense technology, were in focus in another agreement, initialed by Csak and defense chief Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky on the Hungarian side and Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacir of Türkiye.

A Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in defense industry was signed by head of Türkiye's Defense Industries Presidency Haluk Gorgun and Szalay-Bobrovniczky.

Additionally, Türkiye's Communications Director Fahrettin Altun and Hungary's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Visual and Audiovisual Policy Cooperation.

Szijjarto and Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar also signed a memorandum of understanding on nuclear energy cooperation.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Szijjarto inked a General Cooperation Agreement, while Türkiye's Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya and his Hungarian counterpart Sandor Pinter signed a pact on collaboration in civil emergency situations.

- Cooperation pact by interior ministries

After the signing by Erdogan and Orban, Yerlikaya and Pinter signed a declaration of intent for a joint cooperation mechanism between the two countries' interior ministries.

Several companies, including Turkish conglomerate Nurol Holding and Hungarian automotive company Raba and defense industry company N7 signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation, also signed by Hungarian Szalay-Bobrovniczky.

As part of the Turkish delegation's contacts in Hungary, Türkiye's Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAS) and Hungarian electricity company MVM Group signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation.

To officials from Türkiye's State Archives and the National Archives of Hungary also signed a Cooperation Protocol.

Another protocol of cooperation was signed between Turkish public broadcaster TRT and Hungarian public media company MTVA.

A protocol on cooperation in the field of Turkology was also signed by ELTE University in Budapest and the Yunus Emre Institute, a cultural institute Türkiye founded in 2007 to spread Turkish culture and language abroad.