BUDAPEST, Hungary
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban insisted Friday on the good relations between Egypt and Hungary during a joint press conference with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
El-Sisi's two-day visit to Hungary as part of a European tour has generated negative press in Hungary, center-left newspaper Nepszabadsag running the headline "Commander coming, in suit" and saying: "The 60-year-old president brought back civilian-clothed military government."
Orban emphasized, however, that bilateral relations between Egypt and Hungary had always been good.
"Social systems, that give successful results in western world, may be successful in other civilizations also," he told a joint press conference after their meeting in Hungary's capital, Budapest. "But [...] we are not democracy teachers. All nations should make this decision on their own."
But certain media outlets preferred focusing on el-Sisi's rise to power. Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Mohamed Morsi, was ousted in mid-2013 by the army, which was headed at the time by Sisi.
"The Muslim Brotherhood's right to democratic governance was stronger than the current president's," wrote center-left Nepszabadsag. "Sisi [...] staged a coup against Muslim Brotherhood members, jailed them and sentenced to death."
Orban chose to insist on Egypt's role in regional and international affairs.
"There is no stability in Europe and Arab world without a stable Egypt,” he said.
Orban also raised the issue of European countries' view of Islam.
"Even, they see Islam as an enemy. But Hungary is not like that. We always talk about Islam with respect," he said
The Hungarian prime minister stated that they had also talked about Hungary's possible contributions to the restructuring process in Egypt.
He added that the Hungarian government would grant scholarships to 100 Egyptian students.
El-Sisi said that he expected Hungary to take part in improving Egypt.
