December 5, The Iran Project - Hungarian Minister of National Economy Mihaly Varga, heading a delegation arrived in the Iranian capital city of Tehran on December 3 to attend a business forum hosted by Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture.

While in Tehran, Varga met with his Iranian counterpart Massoud Karbassian, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh as well as Vice-President Es’hagh Jahangiri.

Meanwhile, an agreement on persuasion and support for investment between Iran and Hungary and joint venture contract and investment in the field of agriculture were signed between private sectors of the two states in the business forum.

Speaking at the meeting with his Hungarian counterpart, Karbasian referred to appropriate capacity of free zones for foreign investment asserting “positive measures are being taken in free trade zones which can prepare a suitable platform for development of trade and economic collaborations between Iran and Hungary.”

Varga, for his part, voiced satisfaction over his visit to Iran recalling that Hungary had started diplomatic relations with Iran since 1939. Touching upon the age-old history of ties between the Hungarian embassy and Iran, he said “the issue indicates to Hungary’s strong will to strengthen cooperation between the two countries.”

Also, Iran’s oil minister said that Hungary is willing to buy more oil from Iran in the future while the banking relations between the two countries will improve.

After a meeting with Zanganeh, Varga declared that his country is seeking to increase its oil purchases from Iran in the future.

Varga pointed to the issues discussed by the two sides in the meeting and noted that “the banking and financial relations between Iran and Hungary were discussed and we decided to strengthen our financial ties and try to remove obstacles on the way of investors.”

Talking to Varga, Jahangiri said that Tehran expects the European Union to take a firmer stance against US violation of the nuclear deal and prevent any attempts at undermining this international agreement.

The Hungarian minister, for his part, said Budapest is aware of and appreciates Iran's role in creating stability and security in the region, and we believe that all countries should appreciate the efforts of the Islamic Republic of Iran in eradication of terrorism in the region.