Swiss National Day Reception

The Ambassador of Switzerland to Hungary, Jean-François Paroz and his wife, Dr. Yulia Gusynina Paroz welcomed hundreds of guests to the garden of the Embassy of Switzerland in Budapest this Monday evening to celebrate Swiss National Day.

The August 1 national day celebrates a treaty of alliance from 1291 between the cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden as this charter is one of a series of alliances from which the Old Swiss Confederacy emerged.

In his speech, Ambassador Paroz stressed that that military alliance had become a project of building a society in which the different groups of political and economic actors agree on basic principles necessary for peace and prosperity. "More than seven centuries later, these principles remain basic pillars of our democracy and of our efforts to contribute to a peaceful and prosperous Europe," he added.

He also announced that a new Swiss-Hungarian cooperation program is launched this year as part of the second Swiss contribution to the reduction of social and economic disparities in Europe.

On behalf of the Hungarian government, the Minister of Regional Development and the Utilization of EU Funds, Tibor Navracsics reminded that Hungarian-Swiss diplomatic relations date back to 1918 and said that he was certain that relations between the two countries will also be successful in the 21st century.