Polish-Hungarian friendship has lasted over 1,000 years - PM
Polish-Hungarian friendship has lasted over 1,000 years, we have always fought together for freedom; we also want to fight for a better tomorrow, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in Budapest on Friday.
Morawiecki, in Budapest for celebrations of the 171st anniversary of the 1848 Hungarian Uprising at the invitation of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, recalled that both Hungarians and Poles had to fight for their freedom over their turbulent history. He added that today they were both free peoples who still stood "on the side of solidarity, the common man, on the side of freedeom."
The Hungarian Uprising broke out on March 15, 1848 and formed part of the People's Spring.
In an address in front of the Hungarian National Museum Morawiecki reminded that Polish-Hungarian friendship stretched back more than 1,000 years and that the two countries sought to fight for a better future. According to him, "the desire for freedom" is very clearly visible in the work of both nations.
"We always stood together when we fought for freedom in the past, and we want to fight for a better future," Morawiecki declared.
The Polish PM also talked about the unity of Poles and Hungarians, underscoring that faith in a better world for all people, rather than for the rich or the establishment, should bind the two nations.
Commenting on both countries' future plans, Morawiecki observed that Hungarians and Poles wanted to modernise their lives and bring them up to European standards.
Orban also emphasised the traditional friendship between Hungarians and Poles, and recalled that Poles helped his people not only during the 1848 revolution, but also during the 20th century. Orban stressed that without Poland, especially the communism-toppling Solidarity Union and the Polish-born Pope John Paul II, Hungary would not be a free country today and Europe would not be reunited.
"The Poles gave us the Pope Saint John Paul II and Solidarity. In this way, you changed the course of history and we were able to regain our freedom. We Hungarians take our hats off to you and salute the Polish people," the Hungarian PM said.
After the celebrations Morawiecki and Orban held a face-to-face meeting. (PAP)
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