The interest of Romania and Hungary is great when we talk about Schengen area accession, because long queues at the border will be a thing of the past and trade between the two countries will be much simpler, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto told a news conference in Bucharest on Tuesday.

He added that if Romania is part of the Schengen area, ten new border crossings can open and the reason why trade between the two countries will be much simpler is because Romania is Hungary’s second or third trading partner. He said that there are very strong reasons for Hungary to support Romania’s accession to the Schengen area, and that although Bulgaria is ready for full accession, Hungary does not understand why it would not be part of the area.

Asked about the criticism levelled against Hungary that issuing visas to citizens of countries such as Belarus is easier, the minister called the information a fake news campaign.

Szijjarto pointed to the fact that there is a lot of hypocrisy involved, because Hungarian spies and propagandists are being conjured when talking about Hungary. He added that his country is subject to a fake news campaign conducted by Baltic and Nordic countries, since Hungary has not simplified in any way any procedure by which citizens of third countries could enter Hungary more easily. He said that a look at the European Union website listing visas issued to Belarusian citizens will indicate that the number of such visas issued by other countries is increasing and the number of visas issued by Hungary will be visible. He concluded by saying that it becomes very obvious that we are dealing with a fake news campaign.

Szijjarto on Tuesday participated in the 8th ministerial meeting of the energy ministers of the countries involved in the implementation of a green energy corridor project, an event hosted by the Romanian Government House.

The countries participating in this project are Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania, Hungary and Bulgaria.

Under the project, the construction of a high-voltage direct current cable that will connect the first four states is planned. Bulgaria was an invitee of the ministerial meeting in Bucharest.

AGERPRES