Press Release: EU Commissioner Günter Verheugen encourages Hungary to keep up its pace of reform

During a two-day visit to Hungary, February 2000, the European Commissioner in charge of enlargement, Mr Günter Verheugen, praised the country's progress towards accession and encouraged it to keep up the pace of reform in order to be amongst the first candidate countries to join the European Union. Mr Verheugen also reassured his counterparts, amongst which Prime Minister Victor Orbán, Foreign Affairs Minister János Martonyi and Chairman of the Parliament's EU Integration Committee Dr József Szájer, that the launching of negotiations with six new countries ('new ins') as from February 15 will not slow down the enlargement process for the candidates negotiating with the EU since 1998 ('old ins'). It was Mr Verheugen's first visit to Hungary as European Commissioner.

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