On January 1st, Greece assumed the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the fifth time. On this occasion, Diplomacy & Trade asked the Greek Ambassador to Hungary, Dimitris Yannakakis to summarize the program of the Presidency.

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs János Martonyi paid an official visit to Chile between January 5 and 7 and reopened the Hungarian Embassy in Santiago de Chile. He also had talks with his counterpart and with the leaders of the Chilean Congress.

The free movement of persons is a cornerstone of the European Union's principles and is beneficial for the British economy, as well, the four Visegrad countries (V4) of East Central Europe said in a joint statement on Friday.

Russian-Hungarian relations today are not burdened by any serious problems. They are calm, business-related and pragmatic relations. This is the gist of the article the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Hungary wrote for Diplomacy & Trade.

Hungarian Foreign Minister János Martonyi held talks with his South Korean counterpart Yun Byung-se in Seoul, where they signed a cooperation agreement on nuclear energy. Minister Martonyi also attended the cyber conference there.

250-300 people accepted the invitation of the Indian Ambassador to Hungary, Gauri Shankar Gupta to the India House in Budapest to celebrate the anniversary of the independence of the Republic of India from British rule on August 15, 1947.

Following lengthy but fruitful negotiations, Croatia joined the European Union on July 1st. Some 170 foreign leaders, including EC President Barroso and the President of the European Council, van Rompuy, took part in the celebration in Zagreb.

The Hungarian Rectors’ Conference and the ELTE University presented its Jubilee Silver Medal to Brazlian Ambassador, Sergio Eduardo Moreira Lima for his eminent work and cooperation in the Brazilian-Hungarian higher educational relations.

"It's not enough to be Hungarian, you must have talent, too." This slogan about Hungarians in Hollywood comes to mind when reading an article by a former Hungarian Consul in California, Balázs Bokor, published in a recent issue of Diplomacy & Trade.

The Hungarian Foreign Minister sent a letter of condolence to the US Secretary of State condemning the bomb blasts on April 15 and expressed his deep sympathy to the victims of the tragic attacks, their families and the people of Boston.

The Republic of Korea and Hungary have signed a bilateral Working Holiday Program Agreement in Budapest. The Agreement provides an opportunity for young Koreans and Hungarians travelling to each other’s countries to get a temporary work permit.

Hungary’s relationship with China was the main topic in the previous issue of Diplomacy & Trade. The main issues were touched upon by Szabolcs Takács, Deputy State Secretary for Global Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Mark Palmer, who served as United States Ambassador to Hungary from 1986 until 1990 – and as such was the last American ambassador to the Communist regime in Hungary –, has died at the age of 72 after a long struggle with cancer.

Hungary has ensured France of its "full support and solidarity" in connection with the French military operations in Mali. A statement by the Hungarian Foreign Ministry views the French action as part of the global fight against terrorism.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel received Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Berlin. At a press conference afterwards, the Chancellor said it was understandable why Hungary is not concerned with the issue of euro adoption at the moment.