Event "Month of Serbian Culture in Hungary" was formally closed at the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Budapest in attendance of representatives of Hungarian authorities, the diplomatic corps, Self-Government of Hungarian Serbs' institutions and the media. This year's eighth rendition of the event was organized by the Cultural and Documentation Centre (CDC) of the Hungarian Serbs and sponsored by the Self-Government of Hungarian Serbs. The guests were addressed by Ambassador Rade Drobac, State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nemanja Stevanovic, Deputy State Secretary of Hungary's Ministry of Human Resources Attila Fülöp and Director of the CDC Milan Djuric, who all agreed that Serbia-Hungary relations had never been better.


State Secretary of the Serbian Foreign Ministry Nemanja Stevanovic said that the bilateral relations between the two countries were at their historic high, pointing out that this was largely due to the personal relationship between President Vucic and Prime Minister Orban.


"Month of Serbian Culture in Hungary is an event that is key for maintaining and fostering the national identity of the Serbs of Hungary. The two peoples share the same roots, while since 1826 many Serbian culture and educational institutions were established in Hungary", underlined Stevanovic and thanked the Hungarian Government for the assistance it provided to Serbian institutions there.

Ambassador Rade Drobac stressed that the presence of Serbian and Hungarian officials was indicative of the importance the two countries attached to cultural activities of the two peoples, which was a precondition for the preservation of national identity..



"The bilateral relations are the best they have been in the history of two countries. It is incumbent upon us to support and encourage this trend and the Embassy has, in this context, supported all activities carried out by our community in Hungary. Such a wide cultural campaign would not have been possible if it had not been for the great efforts and activities of the Serbian community in Hungary as well as the wholehearted help extended both by Serbia and Hungary", said Ambassador Drobac.



Deputy State Secretary of Hungary's Ministry of Human Resources Attila Fülöp quoted the Hungarian composer Kodály who said that "culture cannot be passed on, unless the generations to come strive for it".

"The Serbian community in Hungary is very much involved in cultural activities despite not being so numerous. For its part, Hungary supports minority communities and their programmes. In this context, I would like to note the kindergarten, primary school and "Nikola Tesla" High School in Budapest, the Serbian Orthodox Church Eparchy of Buda and the Serbian Theatre, all of which have recently received significant funding from the Hungarian Government", concluded Fülöp.

Director of the CDC Milan Djuric estimated that this years' "Month of Serbian Culture in Hungary" was "a step forward", seeing that it gathered many members of the Serbian community over one month, who had the opportunity to attend a presentation of most beautiful examples of the Serbian cultural tradition. He added that such a broadly conceived programme could not have been successfully realized had it not been for the significant support of Serbia and Hungary, the Self-Government of Hungarian Serbs and the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Budapest.