On 19 February 2010 Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration Iurie Leanca paid an official visit to Hungary, at the invitation of his Hungarian counterpart Péter Balázs.

During his visit, Iurie Leanca had meetings with Foreign Minster Péter Balázs, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly László Mandur, and Chairman of the parliamentary Commission for foreign affairs and Hungarian minorities abroad Zsolt Németh.

The meetings centered on bilateral relations and Moldova’s European aspirations, including the signing of the association agreement with the EU that would include creation of a free trade area and the initiation of the visa liberalization dialogue with EU. Hungarian officials expressed the readiness of Hungary to support Moldova on its path to European integration, politically and by providing development assistance.

The two foreign ministers discussed also Hungary’s priorities during its EU presidency in the first half of 2011 and the opportunities offered by the Eastern Partnership to Moldova. Iurie Leanca was invited to take part in the ministerial meeting of the Visegrad Group and the partners that will be held in Budapest on March 2.

The agenda of the meeting also covered development assistance. In this context, Iurie Leanca welcomed Hungary’s decision to initiate a project aimed at training Moldovan experts for negotiations on trade policies with the EU.

he ministers signed a protocol between the Government of Moldova and the Government of Hungary to implement the agreement on the readmission of illegal migrants between Moldova and the EU. A bilateral intergovernmental agreement on economic cooperation is to be signed in the near future.

In Budapest, Iurie Leanca held a public lecture entitled "The Republic of Moldova and the Eastern Partnership: challenges and opportunities" at the Central European University/Centre for EU Enlargement Studies. In this context, Leanca had a meeting with the rector of the Central European University, Professor John Shattuck, and the chairman of the International Centre for Democratic Transition, Ambassador Istvan Gyarmati.

During the visit, Iurie Leanca gave interviews to the Hungarian press.