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This evening, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met with Vice Prime Minister of Hungary, Mr. Peter Kiss, and his entourage, which included, among others, the Ambassador of Hungary in Israel, Mr. Janos Hovari.
Other participants in the meeting were Foreign Policy Adviser, Shalom Tourgeman, Ambassador Designate to Hungary, David Admon, Deputy Director General of the Central European Desk in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mark Sofer and Foreign Press and Public Affairs Adviser to the Prime Minister, Raanan Gissin.
The Prime Minister pointed out the friendly relations between the two countries, and commended especially the actions taken by the Hungarian Government to eradicate anti-Semitism, commemorate the Holocaust and support the Jewish community in Hungary. The Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for the arrival of the entourage headed by the Vice Prime Minister, for the Valor Award Ceremony for Israeli citizens from Hungary who fought in the Zionist Resistance Movement in Hungary during World War II.
The Prime Minister thanked his guest for the participation of Hungarian soldiers in the Multinational Force Organization in Sinai (MFO), the activities of which contribute to solidifying the peace agreement.
In addition to the words of congratulation on Hungary’s accession to the European Union, the Prime Minister remarked that Hungary can be “a factor which could balance out European policy toward Israel and the conflict in our region – an unbalanced stance which was recently expressed in the vote of the European Union countries in the United Nations Assembly”.
The Prime Minister expressed his disappointment of the European vote in general, and the Hungarian vote in particular, on the decision of the International Court in The Hague regarding the fence. “We were terribly disappointed by the sweeping support of all of the countries of the European Union in the General Assembly resolution. It is a one-sided resolution which is based on the unbalanced opinion of the Court of Justice at The Hague, and completely ignores the raging terror against Israel. The essence of the opinion and the Assembly resolution, is a green light to Palestinian terror.
In response to the question of his guest, the Prime Minister clarified that Israel will continue to build the fence, which has proven to be an effective measure for the prevention of terror. “The fence is a temporary security measure, and Israel, as a law abiding country, will act in accordance with the verdict of the Supreme Court which recognized Israel’s right to build the fence while making an effort to minimize harm to the Palestinian population”.
The Vice Prime Minister of Hungary thanked the Prime Minister for his hospitality. He emphasized his government’s commitment to fighting anti-Semitism by all legal and political means at their disposal. In addition, he reiterated their commitment to commemorating the Holocaust and to learning from it so that Jewish Hungarian citizens will never again be murdered, and to enable Hungarians to look themselves straight in the mirror.
He emphasized that Hungary wishes to assist in promoting the interests of Hungary and Israel in the political sphere, and especially in the field of economic development. He stated that Israel’s know-how and experience in the field of hi-tech, could be integrated into investments and economic initiatives in Hungary. He emphasized that he is well aware of the terrorist campaign that Israel is faced with, and that he recognizes Israel’s unquestionable right to self-defense.
Prime Minister Sharon explained to his guest that in face of global terror, all countries of the free world must unite and join forces.
Mr. Kiss wished the Prime Minister “success with this important historic experiment you are carrying out”. Kiss expressed support for the Prime Minister’s Disengagement Plan.
The Prime Minister remarked that if we had a Palestinian partner, we would pursue a different plan (the Roadmap), but as long as Arafat is at the head of the Palestinian Authority and refuses to carry out reforms and enable a determined war against terror, violence and incitement, it is hard to believe we will have a partner. This obligates us to pursue the Disengagement Plan.
If terror is not stopped and there is no tranquility – the process will stop. If terror and incitement do not stop – there will simply not be a Palestinian state, the Prime Minister stressed.
The Prime Minister and his guest agreed on the necessity to expand trade between the two countries and to cement economic and political ties.
The Vice Prime Minister of Hungary extended to the Prime Minister a formal invitation to visit Hungary in the near future.
The Prime Minister thanked the Vice Prime Minister for the invitation, and expressed his wish to visit Hungary again, as he did several times in the past.
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