President Confident of Good Relations with Hungary after Magyar's Election as PM

Bratislava, 11 May (TASR) - I'm confident that friendly and positive relations with Hungary will continue following the election of Hungary's new Prime Minister, Peter Magyar, Slovak President Peter Pellegrini told reporters on Monday, adding that he believes that a solution can be found to issues related to the Benes Decrees. The head of state declared at the same time that as president he'll do his best to ensure that any tensions or conflicts are resolved as soon as possible and that the countries return to pragmatic cooperation. "I firmly believe that this issue [the Benes Decrees] won't escalate into a major conflict, but that both prime ministers and both governments will find a way to reach a technical solution or clarification of what Slovakia intended by this. Perhaps finding a mechanism that will prevent the confiscation of property based on the 80-year old Benes Decrees from occurring even in 2026 or 2027. "If we can shift this debate toward a purely pragmatic and technical solution, I believe that nothing stands in the way of good relations between Slovakia and Hungary," stressed the president. Pellegrini also welcomed the Hungarian premier's statements regarding the intention to reinvigorate the significance of and cooperation within the Visegrad Group (V4: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). "It's been suggested that he's interested in deeper cooperation within the region, and this bodes well for his interest in good neighbourly and friendly relations with the Slovak Republic," added Pellegrini. The new Hungarian Parliament elected Magyar as prime minister on Saturday (9 May). His Tisza party won a constitutional majority in the April election. Magyar was supported by 140 MPs in the role of premier, with 54 voting against and one abstaining. He then took the oath of office in a ceremony. am/df