The U.S. ambassador to Hungary said a troubling trend in Hungary over the past six months threatens to put it on a path toward a “democratic crisis" and raises the possibility that the United States would consider reviewing U.S.-Hungarian relations.
Ambassador David Pressman said the trend includes actions by Hungary’s political leaders and the Sovereignty Protection Office as well as negative rhetoric toward the National Judicial Council.
In a speech on September 18 at the Budapest Forum, Pressman spoke about the recent political actions and its relationship to the United States, pointing out how the governing Fidesz party of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s “control of the media” and its “attacks on civil society” have created an “atmosphere of fear.”
Concerning the media, Pressman highlighted the recent actions taken by Hungary’s Sovereignty Protection Office, including its announcement of investigations of Transparency International, Atlatszo, and an environmental citizens' group.
SEE ALSO: Hungary's 'Sovereignty Protection' Office Launches Investigation Into Transparency InternationalTransparency International has ranked Hungary as the most corrupt country in Europe for the past two years. Similarly, Atlatszo, an independent media outlet, focuses on exposing corruption and has published articles relating to Orban’s son’s extraordinary wealth.
The ambassador, who took up the post in 2022, said the recent actions go beyond the media and civil society to include the judiciary. He said that, when he first arrived in Hungary, he met with the National Judicial Council, and the meeting resulted in “one of the government’s most vitriolic campaigns, targeting the judges, labeling them as traitors, for meeting with the United States ambassador.”
These attacks, Pressman said, were strewn across every media outlet for three consecutive months and affected more than just the judges on the National Judicial Council. “Every judge in Hungary” was taught a lesson that any criticism of the government, even apolitical, was betrayal and would come with consequences.
The perpetuation of “fear and silence” seeks to marginalize and even eliminate independent voices in media and civil society, he said, adding that these actions could lead to the United States pursuing “a different kind of relationship” with Hungary.
"I continue to hope that the relationship will be a closer more honest and candid one," Pressman said.
Hungary’s membership within both the EU and NATO has led to the United States calling for a relationship based on, “transparency, dialogue, nonpartisanship, and a commitment to democracy.” He said he believes that, specifically in the last six months, Hungary has “made clear its choice” on what the relationship will look like.
As Hungary’s relationship with the United States shifts, so too does its relationship with Russia. In July, after Hungary took over the EU's six-month rotating presidency, Orban went to Moscow for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin performing as an unsanctioned “peacemaker.” Pressman noted that a day after the “peace mission” Russia launched missiles into Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital.
As Hungary’s rhetoric becomes increasingly anti-EU and anti-NATO, Pressman called out the hypocrisy of its actions, saying that, while Budapest continues to signal that it wants to distance itself from its allies, Europe, and the United States, it also still enjoys the benefits of the NATO security umbrella and the EU’s economic benefits.