Prime Minister: Hungary always stands by Vietnam in difficult times

On the afternoon of January 19 (local time), in Budapest, Hungary, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited and delivered an important policy speech at the Hungarian National University of Public Administration.

The Hungarian State University of Public Administration is Hungary's leading educational and research institution, and has been the cradle of many outstanding Hungarian leaders and military figures.

The event was attended by a large number of political, military and diplomatic representatives, including the Hungarian Minister of Defense, scholars, researchers and students.

In his welcoming speech, Dr. Gergely Deli, Rector of the Hungarian State University of Public Administration, said that he had studied in Vietnam and researched Vietnamese law. In addition, the Hungarian State University of Public Administration also has a very active cooperative relationship with Vietnamese universities.

Mr. Gergely Deli emphasized the importance of the relationship with Vietnam for Hungary in the current context, as well as the important meaning in Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's policy statement.

Dr. Gergely Deli, Rector of the Hungarian National University of Public Administration.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh shared his impressions of Hungary, its people, its academic traditions, and its important contributions to world knowledge, science, and art. The Prime Minister commented that the Hungarian way of thinking, approach, and problem-solving methodology is different and has its own unique identity.

The Prime Minister spoke about Dr. Katalin Kariko, a Hungarian who was one of the first to invent mRNA - the technology being used in the preparation of the world's most advanced Covid-19 vaccines, and won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2023, saving millions of lives during the pandemic. The Prime Minister had previously awarded the VinFuture Prize to this female scientist in January 2022.

Analyzing the current world situation, the Prime Minister said that overall there is peace but there are local wars. The world is facing many major problems such as population aging, climate change, epidemics, etc.

The Prime Minister affirmed that to solve these problems, it is necessary to have a global approach, promoting multilateralism and international solidarity; at the same time, there must be a people-centered approach, taking people as the center, the subject and the goal; all policies must be directed towards the people, the people must participate in building, implementing and benefiting from the policies.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the Hungarian National University of Public Administration

According to the Prime Minister, we should not be too pessimistic when the situation worsens, nor too optimistic, nor subjective or negligent when the situation is favorable, but always be ready to prepare for the worst possible scenarios.

The Prime Minister said that at the World Economic Forum (WEF Davos 2024) held a few days ago, during the policy dialogue session "Vietnam: Global Vision Orientation", he received a "sudden but very good" question. That is, why in the context of strategic competition, both General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden visited Vietnam in a very short period of time. Why can Vietnam maintain a balance in relations with major countries?

"We only say what we do. What belongs to history will always be history, no one can distort, falsify or fade it. For example, the wars we have to face, no one can distort. That is a part of history we will never forget," the Prime Minister repeated his answer at the dialogue session.

Vietnam has "put the past behind, overcome differences, promote similarities, and look to the future" to turn enemies into friends, from confrontation to dialogue. The Prime Minister emphasized, "there is no other way, that is the path we must take". Vietnam has become a model in restoring and healing the wounds of war, as US President Joe Biden said in his speech at the 78th United Nations General Assembly (September 2023).

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visits the Hungarian National University of Public Administration. Photo: VNA

According to the Prime Minister, one of the important reasons helping Vietnam achieve the above achievements and results is the support of international friends, including Hungary. Hungary is a traditional friend and the first comprehensive partner of Vietnam in the Central-Eastern Europe region.

Speaking about the traditional and friendly relationship between Vietnam and Hungary, the Prime Minister said that in 2008, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong visited Hungary and laid the foundation for the Comprehensive Partnership between the two countries. Currently, Hungary is the only country in Central and Eastern Europe that has a Comprehensive Partnership with Vietnam.

Despite the geographical distance, Hungary and Vietnam have always been close in sentiment, solidarity and attachment, supporting each other in nearly three-quarters of a century of establishing diplomatic relations. The two countries also have similarities in history and share many common values.

Hungary has always stood by Vietnam in difficult times, such as during the war, most recently in supporting Vietnam with equipment and vaccines to prevent the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Prime Minister presented the Hungarian National University of Public Administration with a painting of the capital Hanoi.

The Prime Minister shared with Vietnamese and Hungarian students his passion for learning and research, his desire to excel, his spirit of sharing, mutual support and assistance, thereby finding a suitable direction, contributing to building good relationships between people, harmonizing personal interests in common interests, as the saying goes "if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together".

Tran Thuong ( from Hungarian State University of Public Administration)

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