Expert: Hungary-USA relations at nadir, Orbán named Biden greatest adversary

According to Szeretlek Magyarország, PM Viktor Orbán called the United States the greatest adversary of his party behind closed doors. But the Hungarian news outlet is not precise on that matter.

Biden Orbán’s adversary

Based on szmo.hu, PM Orbán said that the United States is one of the three main adversaries of Fidesz, the stronger government party, during a parliamentary group meeting in Balatonfüred on 22 February. The information leaked from a confidential Pentagon document, but Szeretlek Magyarország and other media outlets did not quote the Hungarian prime minister promptly. Orbán named the Biden administration among the top adversaries, not the United States, which is a significant difference.

A Hungarian pro-government source said that members of Orbán’s party were afraid in 2022 that Washington would somehow intervene in the general elections in favour of the joint opposition. But nothing happened. Orbán and his allies scored their fourth consecutive landslide victory, gaining a 2/3rd majority despite an alleged and controversial US financial support for the opposition worth millions of dollars. The Guardian referred to an unnamed diplomat who said the relationship between the United States and Hungary has never been this bad.

Botond Feledy, a Hungarian expert, said the relationship is heading towards a nadir. That comes after Orbán’s statements and some government-close media outlet articles saying that the US ambassador in Budapest intervenes in Hungarian domestic politics. The Economist wrote that even Hungarian leaders were bugged by the US secret services. But Feledy said the USA regularly milk their allies. It is part of the game. However, if we put after each other the following facts, we can see that something went bad concerning the US-Hungary relationship:

• the ban of Mr Laszlóczki, vice-chairman of the Russian International Investment Bank,
• the unilateral termination of an important tax agreement between the USA and Hungary,
• the alleged ban of several other Hungarian officials
• Washington’s move overwriting the Hungarian ban concerning the Ukraine-NATO summits
• Biden did not invite the Orbán cabinet to the Summit for Democracy

The relationship was tense already in 2014, but the war made it worse.

Republican victory does not mean victory for Orbán

Mr Feledy said that a Trump victory does not automatically mean pro-Hungary voices will gain ground in Washington. The main question is what stance Hungary takes concerning China. That is because more Republicans criticise even Biden in that regard. Meanwhile, Hungary is one of the closest European partners of Beijing. If Trump won, Hungary would have to work much to help the Americans forget that. Currently, America criticises Hungary for not ending its dependence on Russian energy and not taking serious steps to halt Russian espionage. As a result, investors can turn away from Hungary, Mr Feledy said.

The Pentagon leak concerned a lot of documents regarding the war in Ukraine, depicting a sorrowful picture of the Ukrainian resistance. Furthermore, the documents contained information about Egyptian arms deliveries for Russia and South Korean concerns about using their weapons in Ukraine. The White House did not confirm the validity of the documents, but authorities arrested a 21-year-old air national guardsman this week.

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