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Menczer: Hungarian foreign policy remains consistent with the "one China" principle
Tamas Menczer, state secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs raised an important issue on his social media page after Taiwan rejected China's 'one country, two systems' plan for the island. The state secretary implied that Hungary does not recognize two, but only 'one China'.
"Peace has been the focus of Hungarian foreign policy for many months. Peace is the only solution to the war next door and the suffering and economic issues it causes. We are concerned that security crises and tensions are also occurring in other parts of the world. In the current situation, we do not want to see two of the world's major powers in conflict with each other, even if the conflict is geographically far away from us. We sincerely hope that the situation around Taiwan will not escalate and that the world's major powers will return to cooperation based on mutual respect and trust as soon as possible. Hungarian foreign policy will remain consistent with the "one China" principle,"- the state secretary posted on Facebook.
The post comes as relations between Taipei and Beijing have soured since Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan. Pelosi was the highest-ranking US politician to visit the island in decades - an unfavorable move in the eyes of the Chinese government. Therefore, the People's Republic of China conducted a large-scale military exercise in the Taiwan region during the visit. The Taiwanese government has accused the Chinese Army of preparing to invade Taiwan.
Young Hungarians say democracy declined under Orbán, survey shows
About four-in-ten Hungarian adults (38%) say their country has become less democratic since Viktor Orban became prime minister - according to a new poll by Pew Research Center. Young adults between the ages of 18 to 29 are more likely (47%) to say that democracy has declined in Hungary since Orban has been in office than those 65 and older( 29%) . Hungarians living in an urban region (52%) compared with rural residents (27%) were also less satisfied with the state of democracy in the country.
Regardless of the numbers above, most Hungarians approve of Orban as prime minister. Pew's survey, conducted in the weeks following his electoral victory in April shows that 57% of Hungarians approve of Orban, and only one-third disapprove of him.
Inflation at record high in Hungary, as central bank raises interest rates
Inflation in Hungary accelerated to the fastest in two decades after the central bank raised interest rates by more than 800 basis points this year - the highest amount in the EU. Forint, Hungary's currency was the third worst performing among countries with emerging markets. The country's currency fell more than 8 percent against the Euro - Bloomberg reports.
Consumer prices rose an unprecedented 13,7 percent last month compared to 2021. ( Basic food items, such as bread and margarine, rose more than 50 percent. ) Core inflation was even higher than that: 16,7 percent.
The country's right-wing government plans to remove the price cap on fuel to cut spending.