Viktor Orbán awarded Supreme Order of the Turkic World

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was the one honoured with the award of "The Supreme Order of the Turkic World" this year.

Bertalan Havasi, the Prime Minister's press chief, told MTI that the award was presented to the Orbán by Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov in Bishkek. The Supreme Order of the Turkic World is the highest award of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), which was established in 2019. The award is given to outstanding leaders who have made a significant contribution to strengthening unity and cooperation among Turkic states and to cultivating their shared cultural heritage.

According to the official citation,

Viktor Orbán was honoured "for his outstanding efforts to strengthen relations between Hungary and the Turkic states and for his significant contribution to the promotion of cooperation within the Turkic world".

According to Havasi, in his acceptance speech, Orbán said: 'We Hungarians are the westernmost eastern people, we migrated to Europe from the east, and we are the only ones among the similarly migrating peoples who have survived." The Hungarian Prime Minister said he considers it important that relations between Hungary and the Turkic world not be a thing of the past, but a living relationship. He also said that he does not consider the recognition a personal achievement, as the work of many, many people from the past hundreds of years is reflected in this award. Orbán expressed his belief that the community of Turkic peoples will become one of the most successful regions in the world.

The Hungarian Prime Minister arrived in Kyrgyzstan on Tuesday, where he held talks on the strategic partnership between the two countries, and met with the President of Uzbekistan on Wednesday. Orbán will also be attending Wednesday's meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States.

The Turkic Council currently includes Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey and Uzbekistan, while Hungary and Turkmenistan have the status of observers at the meetings.