An in-depth interview with pianist and choir director Zsuzsánna Balla, who has lived in the United States for more than twenty years, and yet she and her family have preserved and continue to foster their Hungarian heritage, and are active and enthusiastic members of the Hungarian American community.
‘Just as liberalism did not succeed in transforming people after socialism, neither did the competing anti-liberal, post-Christian, nihilistic trends. The solution is certainly not political or movement-based: those had already failed by the middle of the twentieth century.’
From this year onwards, Hungarian universities and colleges have full discretion in how to award the 100 ‘extra points’ in the admission process. Minister of Culture and Innovation Balázs Hankó of Hungary lauded the new system, saying it provides ‘flexibility, competitiveness and institutional autonomy’.
According to Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak, Kyiv plans to shut down the Druzhba oil pipeline starting from 1 January 2025. This pipeline is a key route through which Russian oil reaches Europe, including Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Hungarian oil and gas company MOL stated that it has not been informed of this decision and that transport is currently running smoothly. Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó has assured that Hungary’s energy supply remains secure.
The Hungarian central bank, through its Green Programme launched in 2019, has sought solutions that not only serve the goal of achieving climate neutrality but also contribute to mitigating the extreme weather conditions caused by climate change and improving the state of biodiversity.
The informal meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council took place amid heightened tensions in Brussels on 29 August. The mood was set by Josep Borrell’s decision to relocate the meeting from Budapest to the Belgian capital as a signal of disapproval of Viktor Orbán’s peace mission. Ahead of the meeting, pro-war ministers issued statements criticizing the Hungarian government, and the tense atmosphere carried over into the discussions in the meeting room.
The reigning Hungarian champions Ferencváros beat out the Bosnian side FK Borac Banja Luka on penalties in the away leg, and thus qualified for the Europa League’s newly established league phase. Meanwhile, Puskás Akadémia also made it to the penalty shootout against the finalists of the last two Conference League campaigns, the Italian Fiorentina, but narrowly fell short this time.
At the Winery of the Year award ceremony in Villány State Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture Márton Nobilis affirmed that the government and the Ministry remain committed to supporting the sector, with a particular focus on innovation and promoting sustainable viticulture and winemaking practices.
There are a number of conventional weapons whose appearance in US adversaries’ hands can cause serious damage to American interests all around the world. It is not difficult to imagine the threat of hypersonic anti-ship weapons, barely interceptable by contemporary air defence weaponry, on commercial ships, not only on the Red Sea. Arming let’s say Mexican drug cartels with modern anti-tank equipment could also seriously hamper US efforts to block the flow of drugs into the country.
Germany has some of the most stringent export control laws in the world, especially concerning dual-use technologies that can be utilized for both civilian and military purposes. But the discovery of German-manufactured parts in Hezbollah’s arsenal raises troubling questions about the effectiveness of these regulations.
‘The influence of Mao’s Cultural Revolution can indeed be seen as haunting Western universities today. In some respects, Western universities are now experiencing what Eastern European institutions endured under communism.’
Ukraine’s decision not to renew its contract with Gazprom has raised concerns in many about how Russian gas will reach Europe in the future. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov indicated that Russia could still meet European customers’ needs through the Turkish Stream pipeline, but at a higher cost than before. This latest move by Ukraine poses yet another threat to Hungary’s energy security.
The Socialist Sánchez government in Spain vetoed the Hungarian consortium Ganz-MÁVAG Europe’s acquisition of the Spanish train manufacturer Talgo. Their concern was the supposed close ties between Budapest and Moscow, fearing that the Hungarian company may share trade secrets with the Russians.
US Ambassador David Pressman has once again criticized the Hungarian government, this time targeting Viktor Orbán’s peace mission. According to Pressman, no one is truly following the Hungarian Prime Minister’s efforts for peace, which he characterized as ‘appeasement’.
The terahertz range of the electromagnetic spectrum can penetrate materials like plastics, textiles, and even biological tissues without causing damage, making it an indispensable tool in imaging, spectroscopy, national security, and material testing. Additionally, it plays a crucial role in the development of high-speed wireless communication systems and quantum computers.
Zsófia Kovács, Director of the Brussels Liszt Institute, stated that the exhibition is about identity in today’s diverse world. She emphasized that the prominence of Roma culture in the Institute’s programme serves as a reminder that Hungary was the first country to create a Roma strategy in 2011 and took the initiative to elevate the cause of Roma culture to a European level.
Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris blatantly copied Donald Trump’s proposal for eliminating taxes on tips, as well as including a very similar plan for child tax credit in her economic agenda to what JD Vance proposed during a TV interview. That is despite the fact that she is currently leading the national polling aggregate on RealClearPolitics.
According to the statement issued by the organizer, Zsolnay Heritage Management Nonprofit Ltd (ZSÖK), visitors at the Star Wars day in Pécs can expect to meet around fifty characters during the morning and afternoon costumed parades.
‘The demographic shift also suggests a move towards an increasingly multipolar world order. Not bipolar, but multipolar. While the West’s demographic weight is rapidly declining, so is that of its main opponent, China, and to such an extent that its aspirations to take over the role of global hegemon from the United States no longer seem feasible, and its economy may even slide into stagnation.’
Hungarian Minister of Agriculture István Nagy will open this year’s international non-GMO summit in Frankfurt. The focus of this year’s conference will be on the political debate surrounding new genomic techniques (NGTs).
President Tamás Sulyok of Hungary spoke at the event commemorating the anniversary of the foundation of the Pannonhalma Archabbey. In his remarks the President stressed the importance of the Christian religion in preserving Hungary’s future and self-identity.
In 2022 Swiss-based ACORE discovered a rich lithium deposit near Lopare, a town in the northeast of Republika Srpska. Although the entity led by Milorad Dodik has not yet issued a tender for the extraction of the ‘white gold’, excellent diplomatic relations and statements from Hungarian and Bosnian Serbian leaders suggest that the project could potentially be undertaken in cooperation with Hungary.
Through the application of various new processes and systems, such as power-to-heat, Heat Grid, and eRTO, the Debrecen facility will be the first paint shop in BMW Group’s global production network to fully abandon the use of fossil fuels. The new vehicle factory in Debrecen, where trial production will commence by the end of this year, will serve as a model for all future plants based on the BMW iFACTORY principles.
The government decree limiting mobile phone use in schools was issued in early August and will take effect in September. According to a recent survey published on Wednesday, an overwhelming majority of Hungarians, 85 per cent, support the ban.
Hungary performed outstandingly well at the last Paralympic Games in Tokyo in 2021, collecting seven gold medals. This year, there are 39 Hungarian para-athletes competing in the French capital at the 17th Summer Paralympic Games.
Before 2010 the cost of textbook packages increased by 71 per cent over eight years, requiring families to pay more each year. In response to this situation, a decision was made after 2010 to provide free textbooks to everyone through the state textbook development system, which would otherwise cost families 20,000–40,000 forints. Additionally, 80,000 free school supply kits will be distributed to families in need.
Abraham Lincoln was the first President ever elected from the Republican Party. He ran on a platform promising to prevent slavery from spreading within the Union. Therefore, his election directly led to the secession of 11 Southern states, which, in turn, led to the American Civil War.
The expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant has reached an important milestone, with ground consolidation for the nuclear island of Unit 6 now underway. According to Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó, only countries capable of managing their own energy supply can be successful, and the Paks power plant plays a crucial role in ensuring this for Hungary.
From time to time, the left-wing media circulate rumours that the Hungarian government is planning to create single-member constituencies in areas inhabited by Hungarians living beyond the border, such as Transylvania or Carpathia. This time, it was Péter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party, who initiated the spread of these false rumours, which the government has repeatedly denied. The left has consistently looked down upon Hungarians living beyond the borders, continually blaming them for their own political failures.
During the summer’s largest music festival in Hungary, approximately 160,000 foreign guests arrived, spending 10 per cent more nights in Budapest than during last year’s event. Considering foreign travellers, the most visitors once again came from the Netherlands, followed by Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Spain, according to the Hungarian Tourism Agency.