Hungary open to COVID-19 cooperation with PHL, says Foreign Minister

Hungary is “absolutely open” to forging collaborative programs with the Philippines in fighting the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, its Foreign Minister said Thursday, praising both the efforts of the Philippine government and the Filipino people to contain the virus.

The global pandemic and the Philippines’ coronavirus response were part of the discussions between Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto and Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin in Manila, but both sides have yet to finalize details on possible cooperation projects.

“I think international cooperation and coordination has a significance now so I think we need to harmonize our efforts,” Szijjarto, the first high-ranking foreign government official to visit Manila since the Philippine government enforced strict lockdowns in March, told GMA News in an interview.

“We are absolutely open to that,” he said.

As of Thursday, Hungary recorded 41,732 cases, 12,628 recoveries and 1.052 fatalities. The Philippines, now ranked second in terms of having the most number of COVID-19 cases in Southeast Asia after being overtaken by Indonesia, logged 348,698 infections, 294,161 recoveries and 6,497 deaths. Indonesia was reported to have 349,160 cases, 12,268 deaths and 273,661 recoveries.

Despite the high number of infections in the Philippines, the Filipinos’ “extreme discipline” and the government’s efforts to address the pandemic earned praises from Hungary’s top diplomat.

“I understand that the pandemic caused huge health challenge here in the Philippines and I would like to tell you that we recognize and respect a lot the measures the administration made here,” he said.  “I see people are extremely disciplined here wearing the mask and the face shield and keeping the distance from each other.”

The “good and timely decisions” of the Duterte administration and the “very disciplined behavior of the Filipino citizens made it possible to keep the virus under control,” he said. 

“Keeping the virus under control helps the economy to recover as soon as possible,” Szijjarto said.  -- BAP, GMA News