Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I took my prime-ministerial oath yesterday, and today I can be here with you. Therefore first of all I would like to thank the Hungarians present for supporting us in the Hungarian election campaign and for enabling Hungary to return a civic, national and Christian government. This region is home to a small Hungarian community, but in our language we also say that “little strokes fell great oaks”: every vote counts. Thank you very much for the support we received from this region. My critics say that I came here because I simply can’t stop campaigning, but that isn’t true. In fact there are two reasons I was delighted to come here to be with you.
First of all, I’d like to say a few words to you – in particular to the Slovenian-speakers among you, those of Slovenian origin. I arrived here, as a Hungarian visiting a Slovene, because I’m convinced that the fates of our two peoples are linked; and I wanted to make it clear that, as has been the case until now, over the next four years Slovenia can continue to rely on open-hearted and sincere cooperation with Hungary which strives to be mutually advantageous for our two peoples. Following on from what you have seen in recent years, you can also rest assured that in the spirit of cross-border cooperation – which is the European Union’s core ideal, and which I believe is important for both the Slovenians and Hungarians – we stand ready to ensure that this region develops and strengthens economically on both sides of the border. It is not my place to interfere in Slovenian internal politics, but nonetheless I believe I can tell you that it is widely recognised that this region cannot be described as developed compared with the rest of Slovenia: in fact it underdeveloped. We, the Hungarian government, stand ready to raise the fortunes of this entire region in cooperation with the next Slovenian government – which we hope will be led by Janez Janša.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Therefore I am glad that here we have found a candidate who knows the voices, languages, feelings and hearts of both peoples. So I wholeheartedly recommend that you support Janez Janša and the local candidate of the SDS, with whom I exchanged a few words before our meeting. I believe it is important that he’s a businessman, because if this region has a representative who has sound knowledge of business and the economy, it may also facilitate cooperation with the Hungarian government. So, in the spirit of Slovenian-Hungarian cooperation, I wholeheartedly commend to you the SDS’s local candidate, Mr. Magyar.
The second reason I was happy to come here – and now I am not speaking as a Hungarian to Slovenes, but as someone belonging to the same party family in European politics as you – is that your party, Fidesz and the Christian Democratic People’s Party belong to the community of the European People’s Party. We belong to the same party family, and represent the civic, national and Christian stream in European tradition.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is from this European movement that I know President Janša. In my speech yesterday I quoted a thought from an English-speaker, which I will repeat now: “Politics is more dangerous than war, for in war you are only killed once.” When I wrote this part of my speech, I was primarily thinking of Mr. Janša, because he is a great fighter: the kind of man who not only sees the danger in this thought; he also sees opportunity in someone who is killed more than once being able to rise from the dead more than once. He is a tireless warrior in European politics, a tireless warrior in Slovenian politics, and a loyal supporter of the ideals in which we also place our faith. So I came here with a clear conscience and in friendship to say a few words in his favour. Without interfering in Slovenian internal politics, I can say that I’m certain that it is in everyone’s best interests – both Slovenians and Hungarians – for Slovenia to have a strong, stable, committed and courageous government. And a country can have a strong, stable, committed and courageous government if its government is led by a strong, committed and courageous man. I sincerely hope that we will be able to celebrate together with you on 3 June.
God bless you! Thank you for your attention.
