October 17, 2008

Hungary Welcomes Expansion of U.S. Visa Waiver Program
 

Today, President Bush announced that the US Visa Waiver Program will be soon expanded to seven new countries: Hungary, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and South Korea. At the ceremony, President Bush made his statement with the Ambassadors of these seven U.S. allies, including Ambassador of Hungary Ferenc Somogyi, as well as the U.S. Secretaries of State and Homeland Security, Condoleezza Rice and Michael Chertoff, standing next to him. With this program’s imminent expansion, one of the last remnants of the Cold War will be eliminated.

We applaud the U.S. Administration and Congress for supporting our joint efforts to achieve this important milestone in transatlantic relations. Citizens of these countries will be able to travel to the United States without a visa and will be using the recently established Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) to travel to the United States.

In the framework of bilateral agreements with the United States, our countries have been taking important steps to enhance the security aspects of the Visa Waiver Program. As a result, the expansion of the VWP will facilitate travel and promote people-to-people contacts and cultural ties between our countries in such a way as to not compromise America’s national security.

Today’s event is therefore the crowning of the joint efforts of the U.S. and its close friends and allies as well as a diplomatic victory much anticipated by the citizens of Hungary and the other countries involved.

To watch or read President Bush’s remarks: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/10/20081017-5.html