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Former Ambassador of Hungary to Egypt, Presently Director General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Israel’s Eastern Mediterranean Strategy— Interview with HE Yacov Hadas-Handelsman,
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EGYPT, THE LARGEST COUNTRY IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN—INTERVIEW WITH HE PÉTER KVECK FORMER AMBASSADOR OF HUNGARY TO EGYPT, PRESENTLY DIRECTOR GENERAL AT THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE
Lukács Krajcsír, February 2021, Budapest
Your Excellency, first of all, can you tell us a few words about your diplomatic career? What attracts you the most in Egypt?
Becoming a diplomat has been my dream since my early youth. Learning about other countries, cultures, and peoples, communicating with them in their languages, and serving my country at the same time have always attracted me very much. Diplomacy to me is not only my work but also my hobby and passion. I have been a Hungarian diplomat for more than two decades, and it makes me very proud. Concerning Egypt, I would say it is a country of opportunities for Hungary in terms of political, business, and cultural cooperation. There are many areas where both countries can benefit if we work together. Besides, Egypt is an ancient civilisation, a fascinating, vibrant country that offers a lot to explore and to discover. Moreover, Egyptians are very warm-hearted, friendly, and open people, similarly to Hungarians.
Egypt is marking the 10th anniversary of the 2011 revolution in January. As an ambassador, what were your experiences about the “Arab Spring”? What kind of challenges did Hungarian diplomacy face back then? Has the revolution changed the life of Egyptians?
To be honest, I do not like the term “Arab Spring,” nor do Egyptians, by the way. There were certainly legitimate aspirations for a better life and democracy. Unfortunately, these noble and understandable wishes were very soon misused by some extremist forces to follow their own political agenda and the country fell into chaos and disorder. The revolution of 2013 corrected the wrong course and put the country back on track and helped it return to its natural development. Hungarian diplomacy took the right decision at the right time. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was the first European leader who congratulated President Sisi on his electoral victory in 2014 and who invited him to pay an official visit to his country. This visit took place in 2015. The Hungarian–Egyptian relations have been on a fast-track development since then.
In 2020, a completely new problem arose in the world: the COVID-19 virus. How
deeply has the pandemic affected Egypt’s society? What measures did the Egyptian government take? What are the economic and social consequences of COVID-19 in the country?
Egypt, just as many other countries in the world, has been seriously hit by COVID-19, although the numbers are still relatively low in proportion to the population. It is the tourism industry that has particularly been suffering from the negative impacts of the pandemic, the sector that gives about 13% of the country’s GDP. Nevertheless, the Egyptian government and society have been dealing with the situation in a responsible way, although the loss of revenues created serious difficulties for many citizens and companies.
For Egypt, many challenges come from outside the country’s borders, too. Can you tell us about these and how they affect the country’s relations with other regional states?
Egypt became an island of stability in an increasingly volatile region. If we look at the situation in Libya or Sudan, we can imagine the difficulties that Egypt needs to face in order to tackle the influx of terrorism, illegal migration, and other kinds of organised crime. Cairo is also using its regional influence to deal with these challenges, particularly in organisations such as the Arab League or the African Union. Furthermore, Egypt as an honest broker is very active in all kinds of regional groups and initiatives aimed at stabilising the situation in Libya and Sudan.
Is there any cooperation between Egypt and the European Union? Are there any common efforts to reduce the migration pressure?
Egypt has had an association agreement with the European Union since 2004. Cairo is an active member of the Union for the Mediterranean, the forum of cooperation between the EU and the countries of its southern neighbourhood. Egypt is the main trading partner of the EU in the whole Southern Mediterranean region. The EU–Egypt trade volume has doubled since 2004, and
HUNGARIAN DIPLOMACY TOOK THE RIGHT DECISION AT THE RIGHT TIME. PRIME MINISTER VIKTOR ORBÁN WAS THE FIRST EUROPEAN LEADER WHO CONGRATULATED PRESIDENT SISI ON HIS ELECTORAL VICTORY IN 2014 AND WHO INVITED HIM TO PAY AN OFFICIAL VISIT TO HIS COUNTRY.
it reached EUR 27.3 billion by 2019. Hungary is a strong supporter of strengthening the cooperation between Egypt and the EU. We are convinced that Egypt is a major ally of Europe in keeping the MENA region stable and in fighting against terrorism and illegal migration, and the EU should acknowledge this fact, as well.
Do you find it realistic that the Central European nations can improve their relations with Egypt through the Visegrad Group, or do our countries prefer bilateral cooperation with Cairo?
The Visegrad Group established close cooperation with Egypt several years ago. We started at the political director’s level, and, later
on, we upgraded it to the ministerial level. Prime Minister Orbán hosted the first V4–Egypt summit in Budapest in 2017, when Hungary was holding the rotating presidency of the group. I think the V4 countries and Egypt are natural partners to each other. They have similar views on many important international affairs, and they can support each other when it comes to strengthening regional cooperation in Europe or the MENA region. The V4 countries have a deep understanding of the situation in Egypt, they respect the legitimate decision of the Egyptian people to choose their own way of development, and they do not have any hidden political agenda. All these constitute a strong basis for building a long-standing and comprehensive strategic partnership between Egypt and the V4 countries.
It has always been an important goal in Egypt to play a central role in the Arab world. Against this backdrop, did Cairo support Hungary in any way when Budapest was trying to tighten its relations with other Arab countries or when Budapest was looking for economic opportunities in the region?
Egypt has been giving us its full support in all these matters. Hungarian diplomacy can rely on Egypt’s contacts and expertise both in Africa and the Arab world. There are regular political consultations between the two countries, and Hungary has been profiting a lot by using this opportunity.
Talking about bilateral relations, what are the main results of the Hungarian–Egyptian economic and trade cooperation?
I think the crown diamond of our cooperation is the railway project effective since April 2020. Hungary, in cooperation with Russia, provides 1,300 railway wagons for Egypt at a value of over one billion euros, which has been the biggest-ever purchase by Egyptian National Railways since its establishment in 1854 and the biggest-ever export deal between Hungary and Egypt. Besides that, we have many promising projects in water treatment, renewable energy, and agriculture, among others.
The Hungarian Scientific and Cultural Centre has for decades been working in Cairo. How strong are the cultural relations between the two countries? Are there many Hungarians studying in Egypt, and vice versa?
Cultural cooperation has always been a strong component of our bilateral ties with Egypt. The Hungarian Cultural Institute has been working since the mid-1970s, and it has played a major role in creating a positive picture in the Egyptians’ minds about Hungary. Cairo’s Ain Shams University is the only place in the Arab world and Africa to teach Hungarian language and literature. Many interesting cultural programmes took place in the past years. It makes me proud, for example, that we managed to organise a big concert in the prestigious Cairo Opera House with the title “Viva Hungaria” to commemorate the anniversary of the 1956 Revolution. Hungary has been offering one hundred scholarships per year to Egyptian students since 2015, and many Hungarian students go to Egypt to study the Arabic language or archaeology, for example.
According to your opinion, what are the prospects of Egyptian–Hungarian relations? In which fields can Budapest provide useful assistance for Cairo?
Hungarian–Egyptian relations have positive prospects in all fields. Political ties between our countries are excellent. There is very good chemistry between the top leadership of our countries. We have many joint projects in the pipeline the implementation of which will further strengthen our comprehensive cooperation.
