Stronger RMDSZ presence in Romania parliament would help bilateral ties, says Hungarian FM in Szeklerland

Hungary’s relationship with Romania would benefit from the ethnic Hungarian RMDSZ party increasing its presence in the Romanian parliament, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in Targu Mures (Marosvásárhely) on Wednesday.

At a joint press conference with RMDSZ leader Hunor Kelemen, Szijjártó said he was not in Transylvania to meddle in Romania’s internal affairs, noting that Hungary was “careful to make sure that this doesn’t happen”. Hungary will respect the outcome of Romania’s elections, the minister said.

Szijjártó urged ethnic Hungarians to participate in Sunday’s elections, emphasising that “this is about the future of their community”. The stronger the Hungarian representation in Bucharest will be, the louder Hungarians’ voices will be when it comes to deciding on the future, he said.

Hungary has pragmatic reasons for wanting close relations with Romania, he said, noting that the neighbouring country was Hungary’s fourth most important export market.

Hungary exports more than 5.5 billion euros worth of goods and services to Romania each year, Szijjártó said.

The minister said good relations between Hungary and Romania were also good for Hungarians living in Romania and Romanians in Hungary.

“We believe that a stronger presence by the ethnic Hungarian RMDSZ party in the Romanian parliament would benefit bilateral cooperation,” Szijjártó said.

The minister said RMDSZ had told the Hungarian government that the best way it could help ethnic Hungarians was by offering economic support, as it benefits both the community and the region as a whole.

“I’d like to think that my Romanian colleagues also believe that an economically more prosperous Transylvanian Szekler Hungarian community is in Romania’s interest as much as it is in Hungary’s,” he said.