Hungary and Armenia have agreed to open embassies in the two countries’ respective capitals again, Yerevan and Budapest. Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó of Hungary made this announcement at a joint press conference with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan on Monday, 6 May in Budapest, Hungary.
The two nations decided to re-establish diplomatic relations back in December 2022. Relations were originally severed in August 2012, after the controversial extradition of Ramil Safarov to Azerbaijan. Safarov had murdered Armenian Lieutenant Gurgen Margaryan in Hungary in 2004, and was hailed as a hero, and promoted to the rank of major in the Army after returning to Azerbaijan. The Armenian side also suspected that bribery may have been involved in the extradition scandal, which led to the two sides cutting diplomatic ties with each other.
In recent years, however, major steps have been made in restoring relations. As a testament to that,
this was the first time in 15 years that the incumbent Foreign Minister of Armenia visited Hungary to meet with his Hungarian counterpart,
as Minister Szijjártó pointed out at the conference. On top of the two embassies being opened, the Budapest-based airline WizzAir will also be launching a direct flight between Budapest and Yerevan. The bilateral trade turnover has also increased by over 70 per cent in the last ten years between the two nations.
The re-establishing of relations with Armenia has been and will be a major agenda of Hungary ahead of and during the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, Szijjártó stated. He then added, referring to the Azeri–Armenian armed conflict winding down in recent developments,
‘Hungary would like to contribute to the success of the peace-making process in this case and this region, too’.
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