Canada–Hungary relations are the bilateral relations between

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

, the importance of which centres on the history of Hungarian migration to Canada. Approximately 300,000 Canadians have Hungarian ancestry.Hungarian Canadians
/ref> Both nations are members of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

, the

OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate e ...

and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

History

The first contact between Canada and Hungary was through Hungarian migrants immigrating to Canada in the early 19th century and settling mainly in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

and in the

Prairie Provinces The Canadian Prairies (usually referred to as simply the Prairies in Canada) is a region in Western Canada. It includes the Canadian portion of the Great Plains and the Prairie Provinces, namely Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. These provin ...

. In 1867, Canada became a confederated state and that same year, Hungary joined

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

and created the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Initially, all official contact between Canada and the empire was conducted via-

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. In August 1914, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

declared war on the Austro-Hungarian Empire and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Canada joined British forces and fought together during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. At the end of the war in 1918, Hungary became an independent nation. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Canadian and Hungarian troops fought against each other during the

Western Allied invasion of Germany The Western Allied invasion of Germany was coordinated by the Western Allies during the final months of hostilities in the European theatre of World War II. In preparation for the Allied invasion of Germany east of the Rhine, a series of offensi ...

. At the end of the war, Hungary became a communist state. Between 1948 and 1952 some 12,000 postwar displaced Hungarians arrived to Canada. As a result of the

Hungarian Revolution of 1956 The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 10 November 1956; hu, 1956-os forradalom), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the Hunga ...

, over 30,000 Hungarians left Hungary in 1956 and 1957 and emigrated to Canada which was one of the few countries to receive them. In 1964, Canada and Hungary officially established diplomatic relations and in 1965, Canada sent its first resident ambassador to Hungary.Canadian-Hungary Relations
/ref> In 1989, Hungary became a free and democratic country and in July 1990, occupying Soviet troops left the country. There have also been several high-level visits between both countries. During the 1990s, the Canadian government spent money on advertisements in Hungary in order to dissuade Hungarians from immigrating to Canada. In 2014, Canada and Hungary celebrated 50 years of diplomatic relations.

High-level visits

High-level visits from Canada to Hungary * Governor General

Ray Hnatyshyn Ramon John Hnatyshyn ( ; uk, Роман Іванович Гнатишин, Roman Ivanovych Hnatyshyn, ; March 16, 1934December 18, 2002) was a Canadian lawyer and statesman who served as governor general of Canada, the 24th since Canadian Co ...

(1993) * Prime Minister

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. The son o ...

(2004) * Governor General

Michaëlle Jean Michaëlle Jean (; born September 6, 1957) is a Canadian stateswoman and former journalist who served from 2005 to 2010 as governor general of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation. She is the first Haitian Canadian and black person ...

(2008) High-level visits from Hungary to Canada * President

Árpád Göncz Árpád Göncz (; 10 February 1922 – 6 October 2015) was a Hungarian writer, translator, agronomist, and liberal politician who served as President of Hungary from 2 May 1990 to 4 August 2000. Göncz played a role in the Hungarian Revolution ...

(1991) * Prime Minister

Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between ...

(1999) * President

László Sólyom László Sólyom ( hu, Sólyom László, ; born 3 January 1942) is a Hungarian political figure, lawyer, and librarian who was President of Hungary from 2005 until 2010. Previously he was Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Hungary f ...

(2007)

Bilateral relations

Both nations have signed several bilateral agreements such as an Agreement on the Enhancement and Protection of Foreign Investments (1991), Agreement on the Elimination of Double Taxation (1992), Criminal Legal Aid Treaty (1995), and an Agreement on Aviation (1998).

Transport

There are direct flights between

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

and

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

with

Air Canada Rouge Air Canada Rouge, ''Rouge'' meaning "red" in French, is a subsidiary of Air Canada. It is fully integrated into the Air Canada mainline and Air Canada Express networks; flights are sold with AC flight numbers but are listed as "operated by Air ...

Trade

In 2018, trade between Canada and Hungary totaled $871 million Canadian dollars.Canadian Trade Commission Service: Hungary - Market Overview
/ref> Canada's main exports to Hungary include: electrical machinery, vehicles, optical and medical equipment and plastics. Hungary's main exports to Canada include: machinery, pharmaceutical products, electrical machinery, vehicles, and optical and medical equipment. Canadian company

Linamar Linamar Corporation (TSX:LNR) is an advanced manufacturing company where the intersection of leading-edge technology and deep manufacturing expertise is creating solutions that power vehicles, motion, work and lives for the future. The Company i ...

, one of Canada's largest automobile industry suppliers, employs 2,300 workers in Hungary and is expanding its operations in the country. In October 2016, Canada and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

(which includes Hungary) signed a free trade agreement known as the "

Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is a free-trade agreement between Canada and the European Union and its member states. It has been provisionally applied, thus removing 98% of the preexisting tariffs between the two parts. ...

Resident diplomatic missions

* Canada has an embassy in

. * Hungary has an embassy in Ottawa and a consulate-general in

.Embassy of Hungary in Ottawa
/ref> File:Embassy of Canada Budapest.jpg, Embassy of Canada in Budapest File:Embassy of Hungary, Ottawa.jpg, Embassy of Hungary in Ottawa

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Canada-Hungary relations

Bilateral relations of Hungary