Trianon speech shows Magyar’s tightrope: defending Hungarians abroad while courting Brussels (53 days post-election)
by https://euobserver.com/author/veronika-munk/ · EUobserverUnlock article and share
By Veronika Munk,
Budapest
,
Our weekly digest of Hungarian politics continues, as we report on developments after April’s historic election and on the formation of the Tisza government. This week we cover the following topics:
- According to Péter Magyar, Hungary ‘borders itself‘
- What does his breakthrough with Ukraine mean?
- Warm reception for Magyar in Berlin and Paris
- Sovereignty Protection Office to be abolished
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According to Magyar, Hungary ‘borders itself‘
Hungary’s prime minister, Péter Magyar, revived an old nationalist slogan during a speech marking the anniversary of the Treaty of Trianon on Thursday morning.
“We may be the only country in the world that borders itself,” Magyar said, arguing that this is precisely why Hungary has a responsibility to contribute to the strengthening of central Europe.
The phrase has frequently been used by politicians from Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party in the past, although Orbán himself described it as an “old joke” in 2016. Its use once sparked diplomatic tensions: in 2010, then Slovak foreign minister Miroslav Lajčák publicly criticised the statement.
In his speech, Magyar recalled the reaction in Hungary to the signing of the Treaty of Trianon on 4 June 1920, noting that Hungarians received the news with grief. He went on to refer to other tragedies of the 20th century, from the Second World War to the communist dictatorship.
Speaking about the democratic transition of 1989, Magyar said that the country’s leaders had failed to seize the opportunity to heal the wounds of the nation and had instead abused their power.
He then turned to contemporary politics. Hungarians had recently passed judgment on division, hatred and fear-mongering, he said, referring to April’s election.
“They declared that love and peace are stronger than power games,” the prime minister stated, adding that voters had defended their freedom, dignity, humanity and homeland in the election.
Magyar also sent another message to president Tamás Sulyok — although he did not mention him by name. According to the prime minister, voters had given a mandate for Hungary to be represented by constitutional officeholders who genuinely embody national unity.
Message to Slovakia
Magyar stressed that ethnic Hungarians living beyond Hungary’s borders are part of the same nation and used the occasion to address two related issues.
The first concerned the Hungarian minority in Slovakia.
“We must stand up for our compatriots in Slovakia, whose private property is still being confiscated today on the basis of the Beneš decrees. Hundreds of such cases occur every year, trampling on European values and the rule of law. And those who dare to criticise this practice are threatened with imprisonment,” the prime minister said.
He then turned to the situation of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine’s Zakarpattia region and to recent developments in relations with Kyiv.
Magyar also highlighted the importance of the Visegrad Group (V4) as a framework for central European cooperation. He said Hungary would support expanding the format to include countries such as Austria, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia or even Germany.
What does the breakthrough with Ukraine mean?
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Author Bio
Veronika Munk is an award-winning Hungarian journalist with more than 20 years of experience. She works as director of innovations and new markets at Denník N, the leading independent Slovak news outlet, which also has Czech and Hungarian language versions. Prior to her current role, Veronika held various senior positions at several other leading Hungarian independent news outlets. She was the founding editor-in-chief of the Hungarian independent online daily news outlet Telex, and before that, she was deputy editor-in-chief at Index, Hungary’s largest online daily news outlet. Veronika has a PhD in media studies and teaches journalism courses at ELTE University, the largest Hungarian university.
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