Xi Jinping visits Hungary again and has new ideas, "come home"
"Come home", Xi Jinping has new ideas when he visits Hungary again
China News Service, Budapest, May 10th: "Come home", Xi Jinping has new ideas when he visits Hungary again
"We feel extremely honored to welcome you 'into our home'."
On the evening of May 8, local time, President Xi Jinping arrived in Budapest by special plane and paid a state visit to Hungary at the invitation of Hungarian President Šuyuk and Prime Minister Orban. Hungarian Prime Minister Orban and his wife, Foreign Minister Szijjarto and other senior government officials warmly welcomed Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan at the airport. Photo by reporter Xie Huanchi
On the evening of May 8, local time, when Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived at the Budapest International Airport by special plane, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said this when he was warmly greeted at the airport. The warm and cordial "Come home" conveys the unusual relationship between China and Hungary.
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15 years ago, then-Vice President Xi Jinping visited Hungary. This visit is Xi Jinping’s first visit to Hungary as head of state. In the signed article, Xi Jinping specifically used the term "revisiting the old place" to describe this visit, and looked forward to renewing friendship and discussing cooperation with Hungarian friends.
The enthusiasm of "coming home" is reflected in a grand welcome ceremony.
On the morning of May 9, local time, President Xi Jinping attended a grand welcome ceremony jointly held by Hungarian President Šuyuk and Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest. This is Xi Jinping reviewing the guard of honor accompanied by Shuyuk. Photo by reporter Yin Bogu
People have noticed that Xi Jinping’s visit is at the joint invitation of Hungarian President Šuyuk and Prime Minister Orban. The welcome ceremony was also attended by the president and the prime minister. This special arrangement is rare in Hungarian diplomatic history. When the state guest motorcade in which Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan were riding, escorted by a Hungarian protocol horse team, slowly drove into the inner courtyard of the Buda Palace, they were warmly welcomed by Mr. and Mrs. Shuyuk and Mr. Orban.
In the ancient and magnificent Buda Palace, the national flags of China and Hungary complement each other. After the welcome ceremony, Orban gave Xi Jinping a detailed introduction to the inner courtyard of the Buda Palace. This is the first time that a welcoming ceremony has been held for a foreign leader in this neo-Baroque building, which fully reflects the high importance and high expectations Hungary attaches to Xi Jinping's visit.
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The enthusiasm for “coming home” is also reflected in the details of the visit arrangements.
On the evening of May 8, local time, the Hungarian girl Ola Tamara in the team was welcomed at the Budapest International Airport in Hungary. Photo by reporter Xie Huanchi
When meeting with Shuyuk, Xi Jinping specifically mentioned a warm moment during this visit. When Xi Jinping arrived in Budapest on a special plane, a college student presented him with flowers. This student was the same little girl who presented flowers to Xi Jinping when he visited Hungary in 2009.
"The girl who gave me flowers yesterday is the little girl who gave me flowers 15 years ago." Xi Jinping said to Shuyuk with a smile. Immediately afterwards, Xi Jinping talked about the exchanges between China and Hungary from this small detail, "From a little girl to a beautiful girl, doesn't this symbolize the growth of China-Hungary friendship?"
As time goes by, the friendship between China and Hungary has always moved forward.
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After 15 years, Xi Jinping returned to Hungary, his hometown, full of nostalgia and new ideas for the future. The most eye-catching one is another upgrade in the positioning of the relationship between the two countries.
The new positioning of the relationship between the two countries stems from each other's long-term vision and mutual pursuit. In 2019, Orban told Xi Jinping during his visit to China, "I realized 10 years ago that Hungary's future largely depends on its relationship with China." This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Hungary. During this visit, the leaders of the two countries announced that they would upgrade China-Hungary relations to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era.
Looking back on the past, Hungary was one of the first countries to recognize and establish diplomatic relations with New China. From becoming friendly cooperative partners in 2004 to being upgraded to comprehensive strategic partners in 2017, the relationship between the two countries has now once again ushered in a new positioning, charting the course for bilateral relations to enter the "golden channel".
Another new idea lies in the docking of the development strategies of the two countries. Hungary is the first European country to sign a "Belt and Road" cooperation document with China. Last year, Orban came to China for the third consecutive time to attend the “Belt and Road” International Cooperation Summit Forum. Xi Jinping praised: "This shows that you firmly support the construction of the 'Belt and Road'." Orban responded: "I have supported your initiative from the beginning. I am convinced that this initiative can change the world, change the world economy, and bring benefits to more people."
On the afternoon of May 9, local time, President Xi Jinping and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban jointly met with reporters after their talks at the Prime Minister's Office in Budapest. Photo by reporter Xie Huanchi
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During this visit, Xi Jinping and Orban jointly met with reporters and said that we both believe that the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative is highly consistent with Hungary's "Opening to the East" strategy. The two sides clearly stated in the joint statement that they are committed to strengthening the alignment of development strategies under the framework of the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative and Hungary's "Opening to the East" policy.
From cooperation in economy, trade, investment, finance to emerging industries, Xi Jinping set priorities for future practical cooperation between the two countries in his communication with Hungarian leaders. The 18 signed or agreed cooperation documents are the best witness. In particular, the cooperation between the two sides in people-to-people and cultural exchanges has become another major new idea conveyed by this visit.
As a place where Eastern and Western cultures meet, Hungarian culture has both Western characteristics and Eastern elements, and is known as the "westernmost oriental country". During the meeting with Orban, Xi Jinping specifically pointed out that both sides should continue to support language teaching in the two countries and strengthen people-to-people and cultural exchanges.
The relationship between countries lies in the mutual affinity between people, and language is a key to understanding each other. 15 years ago, Xi Jinping inspected the Hungarian-Chinese bilingual school when he visited Hungary. He used the ancient Chinese saying "it takes ten years to grow trees and a hundred years to cultivate people" to express his message for the development of the school. Fifteen years later, among those who presented flowers to Xi Jinping at the airport, there were students from a Hungarian-Chinese bilingual school who expressed their welcome to Xi Jinping in Chinese.
A cordial and warm "Come home" may be the best portrayal of the people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two countries, allowing the outside world to see that the distance between China and Hungary is not far away. When talking about why he welcomed Xi Jinping and his wife to "come home", Orban gave a sincere and touching answer to the Chinese media -
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"We migrated from the East and settled in the West, but our roots are particularly important," Orban said. "Such meetings always contain special emotions for Hungarians, so I am very grateful to President Xi Say welcome 'home' and hope he feels at home."