This article covers the political relationship between India and Hungary: how the Ministry of External Affairs characterises it, the visits exchanged by leaders, ministers and parliamentarians, and the Foreign Office Consultations between the two foreign ministries. It is based on the MEA bilateral brief on Hungary dated July 2026.

How the brief describes the relationship

According to the MEA brief of July 2026, relations between India and Hungary have been "close and friendly" and "substantive". The brief says they have survived the vicissitudes of political and economic change, particularly in Hungary, and the reorientation of Hungary's foreign policy after the Cold War.

The brief records that Hungarians are extremely grateful for India's role in the 1956 uprising in Hungary. India's intervention with the Soviet Union saved the life of Dr. Arpad Goncz, who later served as President of Hungary from 1990 to 2000.

In November 2023, Smt. Meenakashi Lekhi, Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, gave the keynote speech at a public event held by the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs and the Embassy of India to celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations. During that visit she met Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Mr. Levente Magyar, Minister of Culture and Innovation Mr. Csák János and Mr. Zsolt Attila Nemeth, President of the Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Affairs, and discussed collaboration in culture, women empowerment and democracy.

Visits from Hungary

Hungary's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr. Péter Szijjártó, has visited India several times:

  • 18 March 2025: New Delhi, for the 10th edition of the Raisina Dialogue (17-19 Mar 2025).
  • 21-22 February 2024: New Delhi, for the CII-India Europe Business and Sustainability Conclave.
  • May 2022: a visit at the invitation of EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar, accompanied by a business delegation.
  • Earlier visits in May 2015, July 2016 and January 2020, and, as State Secretary for External Economic Relations, in August 2013.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban visited Delhi and Mumbai in October 2013 with a 100-member delegation that included an 80-member business delegation. He called on the President and Vice President and held delegation-level talks with the Prime Minister. Several MoUs and Letters of Intent were signed during the visit; they are described under their subjects in the cooperation, culture and practical articles of this guide.

Other visits from Hungary listed in the brief include:

  • Mr. László Parragh, President of Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, March 2010
  • Dr. Zsolt Semjén, Deputy Prime Minister, and Dr. János Latorcay, Deputy Speaker of Parliament, May 2012
  • Mr. László Kövér, Speaker of Parliament, November 2012
  • Mr. János Martonyi, Minister of Foreign Affairs, November 2013
  • Dr. Csaba Balogh, Deputy State Secretary for Eastern Opening, January 2015, and again as Minister of State for Public Policy, October 2017
  • Dr. Laszlo Szabo, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Trade, October 2015
  • Mr. Istvan Ijgyarto, MOS for Cultural and Science Diplomacy, May 2016
  • Dr. Pana Petra, Deputy State Secretary for Foreign Trade, December 2016
  • Mr. Istvan Mikola, Minister of State for Security Policy and International Cooperation, November 2017
  • Mr Peter Sztaray, MoS for Security Policy, for the Raisina Dialogue in January 2019 and April 2022
  • Mr. Istvan Joo, Deputy State Secretary for Export Development, November 2019
  • Mr. Istvan Jakab, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, February 2023
  • Mr. Zsolt Nemeth, Chairman of the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee, January 2024
  • Dr. Lajos Olah, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary, February 2026

Visits from India

A 4-member delegation from the Uttar Pradesh Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, led by Shri Satish Mahana, Speaker of the UP Legislative Assembly, visited Hungary from 11-14 October 2025. On 12 October the Speaker and Shri Kunwar Manvendra Singh, Chairman of the UP Legislative Council, met Indian community members at a reception at the Amrita Sher-Gil Cultural Centre. On 13 October the delegation met the Hungarian-Indian Friendship Group of the National Assembly, Vice-Speaker Mr. István Jakab and Mr. Zsolt Németh, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

A Rajya Sabha delegation led by Deputy Chairman Shri Harivansh visited Hungary from 6-9 March 2024 at the invitation of the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly. The Deputy Chairman called on Mr. István Jakab, and the delegation met the Hungarian-Indian Friendship Group chaired by Mr. Péter Cseresnyés, emphasising the importance of cultural interaction.

External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Hungary in August 2019 and held discussions with Foreign Minister Szijjártó on a wide range of bilateral and multilateral issues. The areas of cooperation agreed during that visit, the Cultural Exchange Programme signed and Hungary's decision on the International Solar Alliance are covered in the other articles.

Earlier visits from India listed in the brief include:

  • Smt. Meira Kumar, Speaker of Lok Sabha, June 2010
  • Smt. Preneet Kaur, Minister of State for External Affairs, November 2010
  • Shri Ashwani Kumar, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, May 2011
  • Shri Vilasrao Deshmukh, Minister for Science and Technology, November 2011
  • Shri Sachin Pilot, Minister of State for Communications and IT, October 2012
  • Shri Salman Khurshid, Minister of External Affairs, July 2013
  • Shri Harish Rawat, Minister of Water Resources, October 2013
  • Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, June 2016
  • Shri M. Hamid Ansari, Vice-President, October 2016

Foreign Office Consultations

The 11th round of Foreign Office Consultations (FOCs) was held in New Delhi on 10 February 2026. Shri Sibi George, Secretary (West), led the Indian side, and Ms. Boglárka Illés, State Secretary for Bilateral Affairs in Hungary's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, led the Hungarian side. They reviewed political affairs, trade and investment, defence, science and technology, green energy, water management, pharmaceuticals, space, sports, connectivity, and educational and cultural ties. They also discussed Europe, the Indo-Pacific and multilateral reforms.

Think-tank links are covered by an MoU between the Indian Council of World Affairs and the Institute of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary, signed in October 2016.