Oleh/By : DATO' SERI DR. MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD
Tempat/Venue : BUDAPEST, HUNGARY
Tarikh/Date : 27/07/87
Tajuk/Title : THE DINNER HOSTED BY MR. KAAROLY
GROSZ CHAIRMAN OF THE COUNCIL
OF MINISTERS
His Excellency Mr. Kaaroly Grosz;
Ladies and Gentlemen.
May I first extend my heartiest congratulations on your
recent appointment as Chairman of the Council of Ministers.
Under your able leadership, I am confident Hungary can look
forward to continued prosperity and stability.
2. I would also like to take this opportunity to express
my gratitude to the Government of Hungary for the kind
invitation to visit your country and for the excellent
arrangements and generous hospitality accorded to me and my
delegation.
3. The warmth of your welcome and the impact Budapest has
had on me promise to make my first visit to Hungary a truly
memorable one. Budapest has been reputed to be one of the
most magnificent cities in the world and my visit here has
only helped to confirm the truth of what generations before
me have known. I look forward to seeing more of your
beautiful country in the remaining days of my visit.
4. It is indeed remarkable that even though you have a
small population you could match the capacities of other
bigger developed nations. Your pragmatic approach to
planning and fresh perspectives on East-West relations
have brought about important changes in the economy. The
growth of your industry has been phenomenal and Malaysia
would do well to emulate some of your industrial practices.
You have adapted your industrial planning to the country's
resources where the emphasis has been on the use of few raw
materials and greater labour utilisation. This has
paid off handsomely and today Hungary can be proud of her
achievements in telecommunications, public transport and
ship-building, the latter an amazing feat for a landlocked
country.
Your Excellency,
5. It is often said that in an attempt at rapid
industrialisation a nation loses its soul but I see that
Hungary is in an enviable position where many cultures have
been fused to ensure a unique Hungarian culture. The
artistic and philosophical attainments of the Middle Ages
rooted itself in congenial soil where Hungarian values
joined the great stream of medieval Western culture while
retaining its own individual colour. Hungary excels in
various fields of music, literature, the arts and the
sciences. The Hungarian Academy of Science that dates its
foundation to the mid-19th century has produced scientists
that have few peers. Who, may I ask, has not heard of the
Rubic Cube and your famous Herend porcelain?
Your Excellency,
6. Malaysia and Hungary have enjoyed cordial and friendly
relations. Although trade between our two countries is
relatively small, it does not mean that the situation must
remain static. I am confident that we can study various
ways by which trade can be improved and increased to our
mutual benefit. I believe one way is for Hungary to buy
directly from Malaysia rather than through indirect
channels.
7. My visit here affords the opportunity for us to examine
the future prospects as Malaysian businessmen are even now
talking with their Hungarian counterparts on how we can
achieve a greater flow of goods between our two countries.
I wish them all success in their deliberations.
8. It is also my hope that greater efforts would be made to
make our people aware of the various opportunities available
for mutually beneficial economic cooperation. The holding
of another Hungarian Week in Kuala Lumpur in October this
year is a positive step in this direction. I hope a
Malaysian week can be held here in Budapest.
9. On the Malaysian side, a train ride out of Kuala Lumpur
will help many realise that Hungarians export comfortable
coaches. Our cooperation need not begin and end with
railway coaches only. As developing countries with common
aspirations we can branch out into other fields such
as pharmaceuticals, fertilisers, and training in the
agricultural sector. We could also look into the possibility
of extending technical assistance to each other as from one
developing country to another.
10. It is my fervent hope that our bilateral relations will
grow from strength to strength given the fact that our two
sides are desirous of enhancing the existing ties and
building on what we have for greater consolidation in the
future.
Your Excellency,
11. Technology is contracting our world. Improvements in
modern communications mean that any point on the map is only
a flight away. Interdependence has become a necessity in
the conduct of relations between states. It is not enough
anymore to cooperate among friends within regional
groupings. Efforts must be made to reach beyond immediate
or adjacent regions in the name of interdependence. My
visit here is taken on the premise that no distance or
barriers divide us or stand in the way of our cooperation.
12. Inter-dependence also means a deep awareness of sharing
and caring over issues of peace, stability and international
cooperation. The records of your country and mine place
both of us in the same plane. Although we are small
countries we insist that our voices should be heard. We do
not believe that giants own this earth and that others have
no role to play. In that context, we should express concern
over the spiralling arms race and, while present indications
with regard to relations between the United States and the
Soviet Union give some reason to be hopeful, we must
continue to urge early and qualitative progress on
disarmament and the abatement of the superpower rivalry
which looms in various regions.
13. I believe we should also voice our concern on
oppression and repression on our less unfortunate brothers.
The plight of the Palestinian people and the valiant
struggle of the PLO for their homeland, the unconquerable
spirit of Africans fighting against the apartheid regime in
South Africa; the endless stream of refugees from the
fighting in Afghanistan, and in Kampuchea should continue to
occupy the priorities of our foreign policy.
Your Excellency,
14. We are appreciative of Hungary's support for Malaysia
at the International Conference on Drug Abuse and Illicit
Trafficking in Vienna recently. All of us have an
obligation to carry out the fight, even those countries that
are least affected by drugs. There are no safe havens. There
has to be a continuing programme on the basis of the
Comprehensive Multi-disciplinary Outline of Action, the
document we adopted in Vienna, which all countries should
undertake where our national efforts are linked regionally
and internationally.
Your Excellency,
15. I am very happy to be in Hungary. My delegation and I
have enjoyed your kind hospitality and would like to thank
your Government for all the courtesies extended to us. I
look forward to returning the compliment. My wife and I
would be delighted to receive you, and your charming wife,
as our guests in Kuala Lumpur in the not too distant future.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
16. May I request you to join me in a toast to His
Excellency the President of The Presidential Council, to you
Mr. Prime Minister and to the Government and people of
Hungary for their continued happiness and prosperity.
Thank you.