Oleh/By : DATO' SERI DR. MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD
Tempat/Venue : SRI PERDANA, KUALA LUMPUR
Tarikh/Date : 21/04/97
Tajuk/Title : THE DINNER IN HONOUR OF H.E.
GYULA HORN PRIME MINISTER OF THE
REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY
1. I am indeed pleased to welcome Your Excellency,
Madam Anna Horn and the members of the Hungarian
delegation to Malaysia. This official visit which
includes Cabinet Ministers, senior officials and some
members of the private sector is a clear demonstration of
the dynamism in our bilateral relations.
2. Malaysians recall clearly the visit of His
Excellency Dr. Arpad Goncz, President of the Republic of
Hungary to Malaysia in 1992. I had also made an official
visit to your beautiful country in 1987. These visits
and those of other leading personalities from both our
countries have provided us the opportunity to get to know
each other better. Our two countries have also been
holding exploratory discussions on various areas in which
we can collaborate.
3. The Agreement on Scientific and Technical
Cooperation and the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
pertaining to the Promotion of Trade that were signed
today will broaden further the scope of our bilateral
cooperation. Malaysia and Hungary have previously signed
other agreements. Taken together, these agreements
provide a good framework for trade, economic cooperation,
research and development and tourism.
4. Our two countries have also recognised the need to
foster closer contacts between our respective private
sectors. Such contacts would encourage them to seize
the opportunities to exploit the vast business potentials
that exist in our two countries and in third countries.
I am confident that the complementarity that exists in
our two economies will result in good private sector
networking.
5. Hungary's highly developed industrial and
technological capacity is not well known enough among
Malaysian industrialists. In this respect, we would like
to encourage Hungary to hold exhibitions and seminars
like the one that is being currently held in conjunction
with this visit. This would serve to broaden the
knowledge of Malaysian industrialists and other
entrepreneurs and enable them to identify areas for
possible joint-ventures.
6. Hungarian investors are warmly welcomed in Malaysia
to participate in our national development projects and
in the manufacturing sector. There is scope for Malaysia
to use Hungarian expertise, particularly in high
technology relating to the production of machinery,
railway engineering, power transmission lines and timber-
based products.
7. Malaysia which is strategically located in the fast
growing East Asia region can be used as a base by
Hungarian businesses interested in gaining access to this
lucrative market. On our part, we will continue to
encourage our entrepreneurs to participate in economic
projects in Hungary particularly those related to its
privatisation. Malaysian companies could also use
Hungary as a distribution centre for some of our products
for the Eastern-Central Europe region.
8. The total trade between Malaysia and Hungary is
still very small, amounting to US$62.8 million last year.
Greater efforts have to be made towards increasing the
total volume and the diversity of our trade. It is noted
that Malaysian manufactured and semi-manufactured
products have not been able to make significant in-roads
into the Hungarian market and I hope this can be
remedied.
9. Malaysia has followed with great interest the
economic transformation that Hungary has undergone since
1990. The confidence expressed by international agencies
like the IMF in the economic reform process in Hungary
underscores this transformation. The admission of
Hungary as a member of the OECD in 1996 is indeed
commendable. We are confident that Hungary will continue
to witness progress and prosperity.
10. Malaysia notes Hungary's keen interest to join the
European Union and we trust that Hungary's membership
would contribute to a European Union that will be more
representative of all the openness that Europe believes
in. Hungary's desire to join must surely be because
there is benefit in being in the Union. By the same
token, there is disadvantage in being outside. Such a
disadvantage should of course not be detrimental to
countries which will never qualify to be in.
11. Malaysia and Hungary share common perspectives and
approaches on many international issues. The conflict in
Bosnia and Herzegovina requires us to cooperate more
closely. Malaysia, like Hungary believes that the United
Nations has a primary role to assume in ensuring
international peace and security.
12. I would like to once again express my pleasure in
welcoming you and the distinguished members of your
delegation to Malaysia and hope your stay in Malaysia
will be enjoyable and rewarding.
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