Lets have a new enemy: Romania

One can say all sorts of things about Foreign Minister Pter Szijjrt, just not that he is the
paragon of diplomatic virtue. Upon his arrival in Hungarys foreign ministry, he not only got
rid of Hungarys seasoned diplomats but also used language rarely heard in the world of
diplomacy. Szijjrt was groomed for his diplomatic career in the rough and tumble of
Hungarian politics, Fidesz style. He tore into fellow foreign ministers, presidents, prime
ministers, anyone who dared utter a word against Hungary. Actually, he was just following
the instructions of Prime Minister Viktor Orbn, who at his very first meeting with the
Hungarian ambassadors told them that they cannot let one untrue statement about the
country go unanswered. Thus, like diplomats from banana republics, Hungarian ambassadors
routinely write letters to the editor of major papers of the country where they serve. A rather
distasteful habit.
It is hard to assess Hungarys relations with her neighbors because they are so volatile. One
month Szijjrt sends threatening letters to presidents, prime ministers, foreign ministers of
Croatia, Slovenia, and Austria and the next month we hear high praise for the same countries
from Viktor Orbn. There are exceptions to the rule: Serbian-Hungarian relations seem to be
consistently good and Romanian-Hungarian relations, consistently bad. Szijjrts latest move
will not improve the situation with Romania.
Szijjrt forbade Hungarian diplomats serving abroad to attend the receptions Romanian
embassies gave today on the countrys national holiday. It was on December 1, 1918 that the
National Assembly of Transylvania and Hungary convened in Alba Iulia/Gyulafehrvr and
decreed the unification of those Romanians and of all the territories inhabited by them with
Romania. As the foreign ministrys spokesman explained to HVG, the Hungarian people
have no reason to celebrate December 1.

A contemporary depiction of the meeting of the Romanian National Assembly on

December 1, 1918
Thus no one represented official Hungary at the reception in Budapest where the Romanian
ambassador greeted the visitors in both Romanian and Hungarian and where the national
anthems of both countries were played. The concert that followed included pieces by Johann
Sebastian Bach, Bla Bartk, and George Enescu. The ambassadors speech, delivered in
English, put special emphasis on the 1996 Hungarian-Romanian treaty on mutual
understanding, cooperation, and good neighborliness. The English-French-language text of
the treaty is available online, and its importance is detailed in a recent press release by the
Romanian Foreign Ministry on the twentieth anniversary of its signing.
The Romanians response was surprisingly mild: it is hard to understand such a decision
because honoring the values and national symbols of a country certainly belongs to the basic
precepts of the European Union and the Atlantic community. As we have had to learn in the
last six years or so, however, such niceties are not observed by the Hungarian government.
Just as Viktor Orbn told the delegates of the Hungarian Diaspora Council on November 30,
political correctness, as a way of speaking, is the instrument of worldwide intellectual
oppression, which he naturally refuses to accept.
The pro-government media naturally greeted the Orbn governments decision with elation.
At last were handling the Romanian national holiday as we should, opined 888.hu. At last
we have a foreign minister who behaves as he should. Leaders of the socialist-liberal
governments behaved abominably, according to the news site. For example, on December 1,
2002 President rpd Gncz, Prime Minister Pter Medgyessy, and Foreign Minister Lszl
Kovcs were among the guests at the reception where they met Romanias prime minister
Adrian Nstase and representatives of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians, the major
Hungarian party in Romania. Fidesz, which had lost the election only a few months before,
raised hell. Fidesz sympathizers quickly organized a demonstration of about 500-600 people
in front of the Kempinski Hotel where the reception was held. The party, by then in
opposition, did everything in its power to create a scandal.
A few years of respite followed when we heard nothing about the treasonous Hungarian
socialists and liberals attending the Romanian receptions on December 1. But then came 2010
when Rbert Alfldi, the director of the National Theater whom Viktor Orbn and his friends
hated, made the mistake of renting one of the halls of the National Theater to the Romanian
Cultural Institute for the event. The most clamorous critics were the politicians of Jobbik and
the Christian Democrats, but Fidesz also chimed in, saying that the leader of one of the most
important national organizations should know that the loss of Transylvania for the majority of
the nation means trauma with lasting effect and therefore no state institution should facilitate
the reception. Under pressure, Alfldi withdrew his verbal agreement with the Romanian
Cultural Institute.
Kolozsvri Szalonna, which naturally is more familiar with Romanian-Hungarian affairs than
I am, brings up past occasions when Hungarian patriots inside and outside of Romania were
quite happy to celebrate together with Romanian politicians. For example, Jen Szsz, then
mayor of Odorheiu Secuiesc / Szkelyudvarhely and a great friend of Lszl Kvr, happily
celebrated the Romanian national holiday with President Traian Bsescu in 2006. Gza Szcs,
former undersecretary for cultural matters in the prime ministers office, back in 1990 even

made a speech in Alba Iulia praising the democratic nature of the declaration of the National
Assembly of Transylvania.
So, why this strident move, which will only further erode the already tenuous ties between
Romania and Hungary? The most likely reason is Viktor Orbns newly found self-assurance
which, as far as I can see, has grown substantially since Donald Trumps victory on
November 8. In his speech to the representatives of the Hungarian diaspora he rehashed the
points he had made in his speech to the same body the year before. This gave him
an opportunity to tout the wisdom of his political views and emphasize his belief that time is
on his side. The real proof is the surprising result of the American presidential election and
the expectation that this election ushers in a new era. The American election supports [his]
earlier view that a major worldwide realignment is forthcoming. With Trump at the helm
instead of liberal democracy we can return to a democracy whose essence is freedom.
By now he sees himself as the premier politician of Central Europe who has brought
considerable prestige to Hungary. Central Europe hasnt had so much influence on European
affairs since the House of rpd or perhaps since King Matthias. Of course, he is talking
about his own influence on the common policies of the Visegrd 4 countries.
Finally, I would like to call attention to Orbns comments in this speech on the Hungarian
military. We all know that European countries will have to commit a larger percentage of
their GDP to the NATO budget. In fact, Hungary has already promised an increase in defense
spending. Perhaps Im reading too much into the following couple of sentences, but they gave
me a pause. First, he said that Hungarians settled in a very difficult spot and our first
question is always what kinds of dangers we will have to face next. Then, a few lines later,
he told his audience that the Hungarian army must be beefed up not because of some outside
threat but because Hungary mustnt fall behind the striking powers of the armies in our
region. I dont know whether these statements are significant or just the usual imprecise talk.
December 1, 2016