Slovakia’s President Zuzana Caputova (C-R) poses for a picture during the appointment ceremony of new Slovak Prime Minister Ludovit Odor (C-L) in Bratislava, Slovakia on May 15, 2023. (Photo by VLADIMIR SIMICEK / AFP)

Slovak PM Lajos Ódor Takes Jab at PM Orbán, Fidesz MP Savagely Responds

Lajos Ódor, who was appointed Prime Minister by the President of Slovakia in May in the midst of a political crisis, made some statements in a public discussion at a festival which suggested that Viktor Orbán is isolated on the world stage in his views. Fidesz MP Tamás Menczer reacted in a poignant Facebook post.

Tug of War by Nikolya Bogdanov-Belsky (1939).

Georgia’s Energy Relations with Hungary Might be the Key to Its Future in the European Union

‘Hungary’s support for Georgia makes sense in a number of ways. With both nations having brutal histories of Russian domination, Hungary understands the struggles Georgia has had in coming out of Moscow’s shadow after so many years behind the Iron Curtain. While Hungary offers support to a fellow former communist satellite state to realise a future better than its past, Georgia offers Hungary and Europe the resources needed to maintain that future.’

The Ukrainian Puzzle—A Review of Áron Máthé’s New Book

‘The Ukrainian Puzzle: Hungary’s Perspective on a Changing Neighbour’ is a book that intends to present the Hungarian perspective on Ukraine to the Ukrainian and international public, arguing that this perspective has not changed ever since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1991. While it is hard to disagree with the main idea of the book, the methodology employed to convey it leaves something to be desired.

Pesti Magyar Theatre — The First Hungarian Theatre

In August 1837, Pest’s first permanent, Hungarian-language theatre opened at the Astoria, with the performance of Hungarian poet Mihály Vörösmarty’s drama Árpád ébredése (The Awakening of Árpád)—this was the first period of the Pesti Magyar Theatre, which later became the National Theatre.

Inflation: Europe’s Feverish Economy

It is important to remember that, compared to the stable period of 2017–2018, some 80 per cent of the rise in inflation in Hungary could be attributed to external circumstances, and only 20 per cent to strictly domestic reasons. Taking into account the ambivalent effects of the war situation and the ensuing sanctions, these rates are likely to remain important determinants of inflation developments in 2023.

Viktor Orbán: Multinational Retail Chains Behave Like Speculators

The prime minister stressed that the Hungarian government needs to be sharp because multinational companies behave like speculators. Food retail chains raise prices even when there is no reason for it, using high energy costs as a pretext. At the same time, their leaders go to Brussels to complain about the Hungarian government and collude with the Brussels bureaucrats, the PM argued.

Viktor Orbán on the Future of Hungarian Football

In an interview with the website of Puskás Akadémia, the prime minister expressed that Hungarian football is not part of the entertainment industry, but rather part of the Hungarian people’s lives and their national identity.

Freehug Bear at Tusványos 2023

Looking at the World from Tusványos

The nation celebrated at Tusványos, the Hungarian one, drapes over various states in the Carpathian Basin and consists of a plurality of ethnic and religious groups, fully including not just Christian Magyars but also Jews, Ungarndeutschen, and Roma with roots in the region. Foreign guests like me, who come from outside the Hungarian nation or family of nations, could also feel welcome, because, if devoid of chauvinism, nationhood offers fertile ground for inter-national solidarities and sympathies.