Union of Arab Banks holds general assembly in Budapest

Budapest, June 9 (MTI) – Hungary is an “open and friendly” country which does not hinder investment, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in his address to the general assembly meeting of the Union of Arab Banks held in Budapest on Tuesday.

Foreign investors creating jobs in Hungary “are our friends”, the prime minister said.

Orban noted Hungary’s “culture of respect” and said that people from the Islamic world are considered as representatives of a highly developed civilization from whom “we are not shy to learn”. Political and economic cooperation with the Arab world could be key to Hungary’s success, he added.

On another subject, Orban said that Hungary’s adopting the euro was “not on the agenda”.

“What we see is that countries in Europe that have not joined the euro are more successful”, Orban said, adding that Hungary was committed to preserving its stability “through (retaining) its own currency”.