Erdoğan’s visit to Budapest for ‘enhanced strategic partnership’

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited Hungary for the second time in 2023. His previous visit had taken place on Aug. 20 – the anniversary of Hungary’s establishment. Let us recall that the Hungarian president and prime minister visited Türkiye earlier this year.

Erdoğan’s visit coincided with the centennial of the Dec. 18, 1923, friendship treaty between the two countries. In addition to bilateral meetings with the Hungarian president and prime minister, the Turkish leader and eight cabinet ministers attended the 6th meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council. As his visit marked the beginning of the Turkish-Hungarian Cultural Year, the Hungarians presented Erdoğan with a gift horse and received the Turkish electric car Togg in exchange.

Ankara and Budapest have developed a close partnership in many fields since the Council’s inaugural meeting in 2013. Indeed, they elevated their bilateral relations to the level of advanced strategic partnership.

Whereas Türkiye supported Hungary’s admission to NATO, the OECD and the World Trade Organization, Hungary remains a leading advocate of Türkiye’s European Union membership. Moreover, Hungary has been an observer member of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) since 2018.

Direct leader diplomacy

The leader-to-leader diplomacy between Erdoğan and Viktor Orban made it possible for the two nations to stand together in the face of key challenges relating to the EU’s future, counterterrorism, immigration, energy security and relations with Russia. The Hungarian prime minister, who famously said that he was praying for Erdoğan’s reelection in May 2023, was among the first heads of government to congratulate the Turkish president and attend his oath-taking ceremony.

It is important to note that Orban appreciates Türkiye’s importance for the EU more than most European politicians. Indeed, he expressed support for Operation Peace Spring in 2019, when many European governments opposed it. Arguing that the Turkish military operation would stem irregular migration to Europe, the Hungarian premier urged the EU to support Türkiye financially to build the necessary infrastructure in northern Syria.

It is possible to identify defense, energy and trade as areas of strategic cooperation between Ankara and Budapest. The Hungarian army’s modernization is expected to be completed by 2026, creating an opportunity for the two countries to take their defense partnerships to the next level. Specifically, Türkiye and Hungary agreed to manufacture armored vehicles on Hungarian soil and discussed the sale of Turkish drones to Hungary for some time.

Trade, energy deals

The two governments also signed a series of agreements, increasing their trade volume to $6 billion (TL 174.5 billion) annually. In the field of energy, Türkiye’s BOTAŞ and the Hungarian MVM had concluded a natural gas export agreement for 300 million cubic meters. Another possibility would be to incorporate TurkStream into the energy mix of both countries more significantly and to sign additional LNG export agreements.

The Turkish president’s visit took his country’s bilateral relations with Hungary to the next level and highlighted the overlaps between their political perspectives. It is possible to argue that Türkiye’s strategic autonomy sets an example for Hungary – to which Budapest’s dissent within the E and its Eastern Opening arguably attest.

Finally, let us recall that Hungary abstained in the most recent vote at the United Nations General Assembly regarding the situation in Gaza. That could be seen as a rapprochement.

[Daily Sabah, December 21, 2023]