Along with the Hungarian commander, a Hungarian peacekeeping contingent was deployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina with about 400 soldiers. The HDF provided an air search and rescue team, an air evacuation team, an artillery team with dog patrols, medical support (ROLE-1 level), as well as logistical support and supplies with 250 personnel.
‘A Hungarian grand strategy for the 21st century must be based on principles that go beyond the question of Eastern or Western orientation.’
‘One of the key lessons of the exercise is that no situation is predetermined. Soldiers must respond to diverse scenarios with discipline, as every soldier is responsible not only for themselves but also for their comrades and the entire community,’ summarized Lieutenant Colonel Tibor Dancs, commander of the 31st rotation of the Hungarian KFOR contingent.
In a recent analysis former Hungarian ambassador to Israel Levente Benkő highlights that for Israel, Hamas’s brutal attack necessitated a forceful response in order to restore deterrence. He points out that Israel has no choice but to confront its enemies decisively, even with or without the help of the US, starting with Hamas in Gaza. By doing so, while not eliminating resistance to Israel as such, at least prevents it from taking the form of an organized insurgency.
‘Trump 2.0 is a huge opportunity. Of course there are risks. Of course there will be things the administration does which I will disagree with. But the big picture is what matters. His victory is a victory for conservative forces across the world, a victory for foreign policy realism and for getting our means in line with resources.’
Balázs Orbán, the political director to the Hungarian prime minister, has penned a detailed opinion piece on the achievements of the Hungarian EU presidency thus far. And there have been plenty: the successful hosting of two Budapest summits, the adoption of the Budapest Declaration, and the expansion of the pro-peace camp—all of which Hungary has influenced directly or indirectly.
One of the most pressing issues in enhancing the competitiveness of Europe is the need to optimize defence spending. Europeans now spend much more on defence in the wake of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, with ten European NATO members set to reach the 2 per cent of GDP spending threshold by the end of 2024. However, developing and acquiring modern weapon systems of cutting-edge technology demand an exponential level of spending for development and production, which can hamstring the capabilities of nation-states if they want to fit out their armies fully with domestically produced equipment, from building tools to jet fighters.
Hungary is on track to establish a fully modernized and re-equipped military force, Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky affirmed during a significant milestone of the Defence Development Programme. Speaking at the MH Klapka György Armoured Brigade base on 5 November, Szalay-Bobrovniczky marked the full deployment of the Gidrán combat vehicle fleet, signifying enhanced operational readiness and security capabilities for Hungary in light of ongoing regional conflicts.
Hungarian Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky announced a historic agreement with Sweden to jointly develop the Gripen fighter jet. This cooperation elevates Hungarian–Swedish relations to a strategic level, the minister stated.
‘Hungary gave Western Europe time to prepare itself economically and militarily for centuries of struggle with the Turks. It is true, however, that Hungary projected the false impression that it alone could hold back the Turkish advance, which proved to be a tragic mistake. One thing is certain: the European public had much to be grateful for to the Hungarian armies of the time for these victories.’
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.