His Majesty King Abdullah held talks with Hungarian President János Áder at Al Husseiniya Palace on Monday that focused on bilateral relations, as well as regional and international developments.

In remarks welcoming President Áder during expanded talks that were attended by the Hungarian president’s spouse and followed bilateral talks, King Abdullah said the visit marks an improved stage of relations between Jordan and Hungary.

His Majesty said he had the distinct pleasure of visiting Hungary almost ten years ago, and the two countries have continued to exchange visits and build on their ties.

Highlighting opportunities to expand relations for the mutual benefit of the two countries, the King added that the political and security ties are improving all the time, while there are many synergies that allow for advancing economic cooperation.

Discussions during Monday’s meetings, His Majesty continued, covered education and the potential of Hungary increasing scholarships for Jordanian students.

Education, the King said, is a tremendous building block of bridges between the two nations.

Opportunities in agriculture, engineering and medical services were also discussed as means to bring Jordan and Hungary closer, the King noted, voicing hope that the discussions will lead to identifying key areas where the two countries can take their relationship to the next phase.

For his part, the Hungarian president invited His Majesty to visit Hungary, expressing keenness to build on the strong ties that Jordan and Hungary share.

President Áder said everyone recognises Jordan’s efforts in the service of refugees, as well as the Kingdom’s role in fighting terrorism and its contributions to peace.

Hungary, he added, has been steadfast in calling on the European Union to increase support for Jordan as it continues to host around 1.3 million refugees.

The expanded talks, which continued over a working lunch attended by senior officials on both sides, covered means to strengthen Jordanian-Hungarian relations and expand economic and military cooperation.

Discussions also covered cooperation in agriculture and water, as well as in the field of higher education, where Hungary provides hundreds of scholarships for Jordanians to study at its universities.

The two sides discussed the Syrian refugee burden on Jordan, reaffirming the need for the international community to honour its commitments to host countries to enable them to continue to provide humanitarian and relief services.

Moreover, talks touched on the latest regional developments, with the two sides calling for political solutions to crises in the region.

The talks covered the peace process and efforts to relaunch Palestinian-Israeli negotiations, based on the two-state solution.

In this regard, His Majesty noted that the absence of a just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue serves the agenda of extremists and undermines efforts to achieve security and stability in the region.

The King and the Hungarian president also discussed regional and international efforts to fight terrorism within a holistic strategy.

Turning to the Syrian crisis, the two sides affirmed the importance of building on the Astana process to reach a political solution in Syria through the Geneva talks.

Prime Minister Hani Mulki, Royal Hashemite Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Director of the Office of His Majesty Jafar Hassan, Minister of Political and Parliamentary Affairs and the visiting delegation’s Escort of Honour Musa Maaytah, Jordan’s Non-resident Ambassador to Hungary Hussam Al Husseini, Hungary’s Ambassador to Jordan Csaba Czibere, and the president’s accompanying delegation attended the talks.

Earlier, His Majesty had received President Áder and his spouse during an official welcoming ceremony at Al Husseiniya Palace.